A Son Forgotten
by DomYang
Summary: Born as the oldest, as the child of prophecy, and born with the potential to become great. A child grows from being forgotten to a legend, without the love or warmth of a family, but with courage and power not seen since the time of the Rikudō Sennin, the courage and power of a dragon. (Warning. A Naruto neglect fic, might have incest in the future. M-Rated to be safe.)
1. Prologue

**Hey everyone, so this is my first story that I've written and publicly put out so expect errors, a lot of errors. Right now I'm just writing as the flow permits so updates will come and go as the inspiration and motivation comes. Though, if this story gets off on the right foot, and the creative juices start flowing more, I'll try and put out more consistent updates and such. Any critique would be awesome, but just tell me what'cha think alright?**

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><p>A Son Forgotten<p>

**Prologue:**

The night of October tenth, a disaster had befallen Konohagakure. Unaware and unprepared the village was attacked by the bijū known as the Kyūbi, known also as the Nine Tailed Fox. While many shinobi and kunoichi were putting their lives on the line to defend their home, panic was spreading throughout the ranks as the absence of their leader the, Yondaime Hokage. Meanwhile, in a chamber hidden away within the Hokage Monument; Minato Namikaze was in the process of helping his wife with her delivery of their children.

Minato was in a panic, hearing the sound of his village being destroyed and feeling the Kyūbi's violent attacks throughout the chamber was worrying the young Kage. Weeks ago, Minato had delved into figuring out a way to subdue or destroy the bijū without endangering his wife. From past reports that he had studied and reviewed, a jinchūriki was most vulnerable when giving birth. Though, in the end Minato wasn't successful in finding a solution that he liked. Sealing the beast was the only solution that he had been able to come up with, though the price of sealing the beast was condemning himself and the beast to the Shinigami and his children to carrying such a terrible burden. However, fate had decided otherwise.

"You are lucky mortal. Contracting me using the **Shiki Fūjin** requires that you forfeit your soul and by extension, your life once the sealing is completed. However, removing you from this plane when your family still requires you, you who gave life to the one chosen. For this, I will pardon the requirement of taking your soul, but I will take something dear to not only you but those who are precious to you as compensation. Do not forget this mortal," the Shinigami ominously said, sealing the soul, yin and yang chakra of the Kyūbi into three of his four children; Narumi, Mito, and Menma respectively.

After the sealing and confrontation with the Shinigami was over, the threat of the Kyūbi adverted, Konoha shifted its attention to treating those injured from the event and to rebuild what was lost.

(Scene Change - Konoha Hospital)

"Everyone had better not be slacking! If I even 'think' that you're not giving it your all, I'll drive you through the wall!" roared a beautiful blonde woman with her hair tied in two tails, that woman being one of the Densetsu no Sannin, Tsunade Senju, as she stormed into the hospital after checking on the Uzumaki-Namikaze family.

Glancing around and noticing the lack of attention directed at her due to the crazy atmosphere, Tsunade decided to ask her right hand woman, assistant, and disciple, "What's the situation looking like so far?! Shizune!?" roared Tsunade not seeing her anywhere.

"Tsunade-sama! The injured have been reduced by half thanks to the field staff dealing with situations outside of the hospital that weren't severe enough to warrant admission. From the number of patients and medics, I'd estimate that we're almost finished treating the ones who have been admitted, and I haven't seen more than seven patients be admitted in the past hour. I think that most of the shinobi and villagers who were injured have been taken care of!" replied a pretty yet exhausted woman with shoulder length raven hair, Shizune, Tsunade's assistant and disciple.

Releasing a relieved sigh, Tsunade voiced her relief with the now stable situation at hand. "Whew, that's good. I had imagined that there would've been many more injured than that, thank goodness. That means that all the injured are accounted for, meaning that the village got out in extremely good shape when you compare it to other villages who were attacked by bijū."

Also sharing a sigh of relief with her mentor, Shizune remembered the two who were in the middle of the attack. "Tsunade-sama! You said that all the injured were accounted for right?! What about Kushina-sama and Minato-sama?!" shouted a worried Shizune, having momentarily forgotten about her village's leader and his wife.

"Relax Shizune, they're safe! Minato had a rather severe case of chakra exhaustion but he'll be alright knowing him. Kushina, other than the typical signs of giving birth, is completely fine. Even after having the Kyūbi forced out of her, she's still alive and is going to be fine. She'll be up and about in no more than five hours tops, I'll even make a bet that she will!" Tsunade confidently replied, so confident that she offered to make a bet with Shizune on it, which given her alias as the "Legendary Sucker" was no small statement.

The two shared a relieved and happy laugh as the danger that, no more than 48 hours before, had passed. That is, until Tsunade had assumed that Shizune was also laughing at her extremely bad luck and chased her around the hospital wing, her fist waving threateningly in the air while the other occupants and staff of the hospital laughed in good humor at the antics of the duo.

(Scene Change - Uzumaki-Namikaze estate)

"Minato, are you sure that you're alright? You used the **Shiki Fūjin** but you didn't lose your soul like what was supposed to happen!" a tall man, with a spiky mane of white hair with red paint on his face worriedly asked his disciple, this man was Jiraiya, one of the Densetsu no Sannin and mentor to Minato.

"Sensei, I told you I'm fine! See, I can do everything without a problem! I need to go see Kushi-chan and my kids, so please stop worrying about me!" Minato replied, creating his fabled Rasengan to emphasize his point to his mentor.

With a sign, Jiraiya relented, patting his student on the shoulder he congratulated him on his defeat of the Kyūbi and of the beginning of his family."I'm proud of you Minato, you've come so far even without my help. I couldn't have asked for a better student." Jiraiya said, pride evident in his voice as he walked with Minato towards the room created specifically for his children.

Walking in quietly, the found what they were looking for. Kushina with her arms full with her, no their children. Wordlessly walking towards her and sitting down, he wrapped her and their children in a loving embrace. "They're beautiful Kushi-chan." Minato said, resting his head on his wife's.

Sinking into her husband's embrace, Kushina sniffled a bit before expressing her sincere thanks to whatever entity that allowed her family to stay together, though what seemed like impossible odds. "Mina-kun, we're together. We're all together. All of us. You didn't have your soul taken, and I survived having the Kyūbi force out. We're going to be able to watch our children grow up and they'll have a family to love and take care of them." Kushina whispered as she sobbed quietly while shaking a little, the all too real possibility that she could've lost her husband and her life, leaving her children alone in the world with no one to care for them taking its toll on her.

Nuzzling his wife and holding her closer, Minato reassured her that nothing would ever threaten to tear about their family again. All through the night, parents and children stayed together until sleep took them as the mental and emotional exhaustion that the two had accumulated had finally reached its peak. As the night continued on, the oldest born of the quadruplets woke, quietly observing his surroundings, finally focusing his attention towards the ceiling as a voice make its way to his ears.

"Child. Child you can hear me, can you not? I am the one who allowed your father to survive his contract with me, the price of his soul replaced with something that will greatly affect you. As the oldest of four, the child of prophecy, and the child who will change the world, you will be without the love of the one's who should hold you close. That is the exchange that I had made in place of your father's soul. You who will be without love, will be the one who will defy all obstacles which will stand before you. Do not fret child, as you will forge a path that will change the world, and remember this, do not give into the hate that will undoubtedly plague your heart in the future to come." A bone chilling voice echoed within his mind, completely unaware of his future, the child slowly looked around the room before returning to sleep, the echoes of that voice repeating quieter each time.

A Son Forgotten

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><p>Jutsu List:<p>

**Shiki Fūjin - Dead Demon Consuming Seal**: S-rank Fūinjutsu, Kinjutsu.


	2. Chapter 1

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey everyone! Thanks for the first 3 people who gave the time to review my first chapter! It's really awesome that you guy's, from the viewpoint of 3 people, are digging my story! It's really encouraging and I'm actually starting to get into this whole writing thing, which is something I didn't think I'd ever be saying! Well just a head's up, this chapter is kind of a info-dump because of the OC's and such. Don't be expecting many of these since I won't have to really change the background of many other characters in the Narutoverse, so yeah! Let's get it on with the reading and such!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 1<p>

(Scene Change - Konohagakure: 7 Years after Kyūbi attack)

In the private training ground of the Uzumaki-Namikaze estate, five individuals were engaged with training. A boy with shaggy blonde hair with brilliant red tinted tips with deep cerulean blue eyes, standing at around 4ft high, this was Menma Uzumaki-Namikaze, third born of the Uzumaki-Namikaze family, who was chasing around his father Minato, as the two were laughing loudly.

The other two children consisted of two girls of the same height of 4ft, giggling and chatting happily with their mother Kushina, second born of the family was Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze, who had her mother's brilliant red hair that went to the mid of her back tied into a ponytail and her father's cerulean blue eyes. The other was the youngest of the Uzumaki-Namikaze family, Narumi Uzumaki-Namikaze, who had inherited her father's blonde hair that was tied in a twin tails fashion with bangs similar to her father framing her face and her mother's violet colored eyes.

The scene now was a picturesque moment of a happy family spending time together, which would have been true if not for the pair of navy blue eyes watching his family partake in another activity without him. He was the oldest of the Uzumaki-Namikaze children, he was Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, having a darker shade of blonde and darker colored eyes then his family. After heaving a sigh, he returned to his room to finish his book, momentarily forgotten for the slim chance that he would be invited to play with his family.

After reaching his room, he sat back down on the bed and continued where he left off, he drifted off to the world that the book offered for him as he contemplated his interactions with his family over the years. "_It's not going to change it is. It's been this way for as long as I can remember, and I still don't know why they always leave me out when we do things. Kaa-chan and Tou-san didn't use to be like this... they used to include me in things when I was younger I just know it..._" Unknown to Naruto, and his family was the contract that the Shinigami made all those years ago with Minato. Instead of his soul he took the away the feelings of love that Minato, Kushina, and those who were close to the Uzumaki- Namikaze had for Naruto, a twisted exchanged that severed the bonds that he had with his parents and siblings and by extension, those associated with them.

Though his parents did not neglect in terms of shelter, he had to learn to make his own meals and shop for clothes on his own. They did severely neglect him when it came to love. He was forgotten and rejected in favor of his more vocal siblings, Menma in particular ensured his parents pay no attention to himself by being more assertive and vocal with his demands like when it came to where the family was to go eat and the like. This divide was not limited to Menma, Narumi and Mito both stayed a distance away from their older brother like he was an outsider, even though in the past they used to play together like normal siblings, however that ceased happening years ago as Narumi began to act similar to Menma and Mito closed him off from any form of contact with her. From the situations that he's been in up to this point, he didn't think like it would be ending anytime soon.

Letting his head fall onto his pillow, Naruto could only think about what his future would hold. He would rather be hated then completely ignored, but it seemed to the young boy that that was an impossibility. However, he would be starting his ninja training at the academy in the fall, so for now the future seemed brighter than it did in the past year.

(Time skip - 3 years later)

"Kaa-chan! Tou-san! Can't we learn any cool jutsu yet?!" Menma complained as he was balancing a leaf on his forehead little success, his mind set on learning something cooler like his father's **Rasengan** then something as boring improving his chakra control.

"Memna-nii, you need to learn to focus more if you want to be a super cool ninja like Kaa-chan and Tou-san, right Tou-san!" Narumi half-lectured her brother and half-asked her father as she was participating in the same exercise that her brother and sister.

Sitting next to Narumi was Mito, trying to concentrate on her own leaf through the ruckus that her younger siblings were causing if the tick marks that were starting to become visible were any indicator. "Menma, Narumi, could you two please quiet down! I'm having trouble concentrating since you two are being so loud!" Mito finally said, releasing her "Nee-san aura" as Minato and Kushina called it. But undeterred by their sister's aura, the two started to argue as to who was better at balancing their leaf as her older sister sighed at the impatience of sibling.

Laughing with his wife, Minato reassured the three that they would be learning something new soon, as soon as they gain a better grip on their chakra control. While Kushina listed off the reasons as to why they needed to polish up their chakra control or else they'd be just like her when she was a genin, a chakra powerhouse without any efficient way to use any of it, which seemed to have worked as the Mito started to work harder as her younger siblings quieted down and started to concentrate seriously with nervous expressions on their faces.

As their children quieted down and started taking their training seriously, Minato and Kushina let their thoughts flow around the chaotic events that have occurred in the past couple of years. Kumo's failed kidnapping attempt on their family friend Hiashi Hyuga's daughter, Hinata. Luckily Minato was on his way to the Inuzuka compound that night to pick drop off Menma when he spotted the Kumo-nin carrying a sack and running. Naturally his response was to put Menma down and chase down the shinobi and apprehend him. Apparently he was a part of a splinter group made of Kumo-nin who were remnants of a radical group back in the time of the Third Shinobi World War, who desperately wanted the byakugan.

Then there was the failed coup d'état orchestrated by Uchiha under the same masked ninja behind the Kyubi's attack all those years ago. From the reports after the incident, those involved were under a particularly powerful genjutsu, warping their perceptions on the world and the things around them. Thanks to Kushina, Minato, Fugaku, Mikoto, and their oldest son Itachi, things were settled with a few injured being the only casualties of the incident due to Minato and Kushina sealing the movements of the involved and to Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi using their sharingan to disrupt the genjutsu.

Finally their thoughts drifted back to their family, namely to their oldest, who wasn't taking part in training with his sibling. Mixed emotions were swirling within the two as they recounted their past interactions or lack of interaction with him. Confusion and despair began to fill their hearts as the reason as to why they were so distant to their oldest son eluded them, no matter how much they tried to remember. "_What happened? What!? Why can't I find a reason why I've been ignoring him and leaving him behind?!_" Agitated and confused, Minato mulled over the reason of his neglectful behavior towards his son. "_I... I want to be close to Naruto, but for some reason I can't open my heart to him and I can't help but feel as though that would put Mito, Menma, and Narumi in danger. Why?! Why is that!?_"

While her husband was beginning to question if he was being paranoid or not, Kushina began to think of her oldest as well. "_I've failed as a mother to Naru-Chan haven't I... I... I just can't open my heart to him for some reason. Whenever I try to get back into his life, it feels like something dark and cold enters my heart and I end up chickening out. What happened?_" Kushina began to feel as if a curse was placed on her to never love her oldest son, which was closer to the truth then she knew, though the truth wouldn't be known to her and her husband for a number of years.

However, their thoughts were broken by a rather upset looking Narumi. "Tou-san! Kaa-Chan! Menma-nii is being mean and cheating! He said that his leaf was balanced and when I looked he blew mine off my hand! Then he said that he won because of that!" Tearfully complained Narumi holding her leaf in one hand while flailing her other arm in a comical fashion as Menma quickly defended himself.

"I did not! Narumi is making things up again Tou-san! Kaa-chan! Ask Mito-nee! She'll tell you that I didn't do any of that! Right Mito-nee! I did balance my leaf and when I told Narumi the wind just happened to blow right at that moment and it was while I was telling her so it looked like I blew her leaf off her hand which I didn't do!" Menma said in his defense, looking tearfully at his older sister for her support in his claim. However, that was not to be this time around.

"Tou-san, Kaa-Chan. Menma did it. You know how he gets when there's he's in a contest, he'll do anything to win. Narumi was almost able to balance her leaf when Menma did that so he could win." Mito said, petting her sister on her head as Menma dropped his in defeat and embarrassment. Defeat because he knew he had lost the argument and embarrassment because he knew he would be getting a lecture from his father and mother.

Sighing to themselves, Kushina and Minato looked at each other before bursting out into laughter at the antics of their children. Seeing their parents laughing, Mito, Menma, and Narumi couldn't help but start laughing and giggling along with them. Though they were laughing together at the moment, Minato and Kushina couldn't help but feel guilty that there was a member of their family that had been forgotten and neglected.

(Scene change - Unknown forest, unknown location)

On the other side of the village, there was a boy no older than 10 years old working on his own exercises under the supervision of an individual who looked no older than 20 years old. "Haa... Haa... How was that sensei?" Asked the boy, wiping the sweat on his forehead off with a towel handed to him by his sensei. "Well what can I say... You're doing great Naruto! However, you're still stiff in some of your movements. You know that to use my style of taijutsu you need to have power, fluidity, and speed. But don't worry too much about it alright? You're only ten years old remember!" Naruto's sensei replied in a laid-back tone of voice. He stood at roughly 6ft tall, having a muscular yet lithe build with short raven colored hair spiked up slightly with a stray stand hanging off of on the side in and electric blue eyes that held a twinkle of mischief. Though, instead of round pupils his looked reptilian in nature.

This young man was a memory from the last shinobi world war, working as a shinobi for the Village Hidden under the Sun (Taiyōgakure) that wished to remain neutral from the chaos that consumed the land, having no real military force due to being a rich agricultural village. Known during the war as "Heaven's Catastrophe" due to his unnatural and terrifying mastery and control over wind, fire, and lightning. Ryuuhei Shirokin had succeeded in his mission to protect Taiyōgakure, inadvertently securing his title and page in the bingo books of various hidden village's due to decimating numerous parties that were attempting to take over Taiyōgakure. Though, only a few survivors were able to make it back to their respective main forces and recall what they had faced. From the reports, it appeared that they had faced a demon in a man's body. Though the correct way to say it would be a dragon in a man's body.

Born the only son of Tatsuya Shirokin and Ayane Hatenko, Ryuuhei was trained in taijutsu by his mother and kenjutsu by his father. Learning ninjutsu and genjutsu from both of his parents, and later signing his family's private summoning contract which required finding a partner that matched his own style and personality. Eventually, his parents passed away by a disease that, from what his mother had told him, plagued their family for generations as a side effect from training alongside their partners, Ryuuhei eventually contracting the same "dragon virus" that his parents had passed away from.

"Ne, sensei... Could I ask you something kind of personal? It's ok if you don't answer me though!" Naruto timidly asked, slowly turning towards Ryuuhei with a somewhat bashful expression on his face.

"Haha, no need to be shy Naruto! I'm your sensei, you can tell me and ask me anything! Unless it's about women. I have no idea what goes on inside of their heads, and from what I've seen and heard, it's really kind of scary." Ryuuhei happily replied, though towards the end of his statement he made a mortified face from admitting his lack of knowledge concerning women to his young student.

First making an embarrassed face, Naruto's face quickly turned a little serious with a hint of anger seeping in at his sensei's nonsensical reply concerning him asking about something personal. "Sensei! I don't want to know any of that! And I don't care about that! I want to know why you won't go see someone so they can help cure you!" Naruto barked out, finally having had enough of his sensei not taking his disease seriously after knowing about for so long.

Wiping the mortified look off his face, Ryuuhei's expression changed from suprised, to solemn. "Ahh, that's what you wanted to ask about eh? I remember telling you that I wouldn't be able to be your sensei for very long when I started training you three years ago, guess you would't have forgotten about that huh. Well Naruto, do you really want to know the reason why I don't take my disease seriously?" Looking at his student straight in the eyes and asking his question, he saw his student flinch before he nodded his head slowly.

Letting a smile come to his face, Ryuuhei walked up to his precious student, put his hand on his head, and ruffled his hair, Naruto bowing his head slightly while his cheeks flushed pink in embarassment and happiness. "Well Naruto, the reason is because I'm going to die no matter what happens so why bother you know?" After hearing his sensei's reply, Naruto's head snapped immediatey up, staring at his sensei with disbelief in his eyes.

From disbelief, Naruto's eyes quickly shifted to anger and confusion. After removing his sensei's hand by grabbing his wrist, Naruto glared at him before yelling at the his sensei. "What do you mean 'why bother'?! You're going to die Ryuu-sensei! Don't act like you can't do something to cure yourself! You need to find a cure sensei!" After venting his anger at his sensei's dismissal of his disease, Naruto began to tear up and started sniffling slightly, whispering something that spoke volumes about the feelings in his heart. "You can't die Ryuu-niichan. You can't leave me alone. I don't want to be along again. I hate being alone." After speaking from his heart, Naruto was crying and sniffling at the thought of being alone in the world again. Ryuuhei was the one who talked, played, praised, lectured, and trained him. He was the father figure that he had always wanted, and now Ryuuhei could be at the Shinigami's door at any moment. The very thought of losing him terrified Naruto to no end.

Smiling solemnly and once again putting his hand on his student's he ruffled his hair gently. "Naruto... You remember what I said all those years ago when I met you for the first time?"

(Flashback: Scene change - Unknown lake)

Sitting on the shoreline of a small lake, boy around 7 years old was skipping rocks alone. His dark blonde hair blowing gently by the breeze, his navy blue eyes filled with sadness and were red and puffy from crying , the tear streaks fresh on his face. His eyes were unfocused, indicating that his mind was somewhere else. Because of that, he didn't take notice of the person who had taken a seat right next to him until he saw another rock that didn't belong to him skip across the surface of the lake. Turning his head, he saw a large person wearing a tattered black cloak, though he was afraid at first he became terrified once the cloaked individual turned to face him and he saw their electric blue eyes staring into his navy blue ones. Though, that fear vanished once they turned away and skipped another rock. Confusion replaced fear, and timidly Naruto gathered the necessary courage to ask the stranger for an introduction. "U-umm... H-hello... W-Who are y-you?" Naruto managed to squeak out, stuttering a bit as the fear returned.

Turning back to face him, the stranger did something that Naruto did not expect. They, or rather he laughed judging from how deep the voice sounded. "Haha, I was wondering when you'd do something! Though I was expecting the old 'scream and run' routine that most kids do when facing a stranger, especially if that stranger is as scary as people say I am!" Laughing after his answer, he pulled back the hood of his cloak to reveal a youthful face and an energetic smile to the boy, who in response smiled back albeit shyly. "The name's Ryuuhei Shirokin, but just call me Ryuu! What's your name!" The energetic smile on Ryuuhei's face grew into a grin, and finally introducing himself he asked for Naruto's in return. Smiling back a little more, Naruto introduced himself and the two started talking and asking things about each other.

After hearing about Naruto's past and his relationship with his family, Ryuuhei's expression darkened as he told Naruto what was on his mind. "Ahh, I see. Your family isn't really treating you like family huh. Well, you know what I'd say to that Naruto?" I'd say that if they're not treating you like family, like they're supposed to, then forget about them!" Ryuuhei angrily said, rage burning in his eyes.

Naturally, Naruto was taken by and frightened by his expression. From a nice and fun person to a person with a scary look in his eyes, Ryuuhei's drastic one-eighty caused Naruto to flinch slightly, but he still managed to stutter out a reply. "B-But they're my f-family right? They're supposed to l-love me and c-care for me."

Ryuuhei quickly lost his angry look as he sighed, looking at Naruto again, his eyes were sober which again suprised Naruto. "If they were family Naruto, you wouldn't be asking me that question you know. Family is supposed to love you unconditionally, and care for you without having to be asked to. From what you've told me, they aren't your family. They're just people who share the same blood as you, that alone does not define family you know." Ryuuhei said, reaching out and ruffling Naruto's hair softly.

After Ryuuhei started ruffling his hair, Naruto, who has never experienced such a gesture could only lean his head on Ryuuhei's hand. Sniffling slightly, he timidly asked something that would change his life. "Then I'm alone. I've always been alone. So am I going to be alone forever then Ryuu?" Looking up with teary eyes, Naruto found Ryuuhei giving him a warm smile filled and eyes filled with what he saw in his parents whenever his siblings were with them, love and compassion.

"There's no way you're alone you know. I'm right here. I've never been able to have siblings or am I ever going to have children you know. If people found out about their connection to 'Heaven's Catastrophe' they'd be hunted down for the rest of their lives just for being related to me. But, I'll ask you Naruto and you don't have to agree or answer me, but how about becoming my little brother?" Asked Ryuuhei almost bashfully, if the light dusting of pink on his cheeks were any indication.

Snapping his head up, Naruto looked at Ryuuhei with almost comical disbelief in his eyes but more then that, they were also filled with hope. Hope that what Ryuuhei was saying wasn't a twisted lie but an actual offer of becoming a part of a family. Launching himself at the young man, Naruto wrapped his arms around Ryuuhei and buried his face in his chest. "Will really let me be your little brother? Are going to be my older brother but not care for me and leave me behind?" Naruto mumbled with doubt heavy in him trembling voice before asking something that made Ryuuhei flinch slightly but quickly recover. "Will you always be with me and look out for me? Ryuu-niichan?"

Slowly wrapping his arms around Naruto, Ryuuhei brought a hand up to ruffle Naruto's hair gently. "If you're going to ask me like that how can I say no?" Tightening his embrace on his new otouto (little brother) slightly, he replied in a gently voice that soothed all doubts that Naruto had about his new aniki. "No matter what, I'll always be here for you Naruto. Even if I'm not here physically, I'll _always_ be with you in your heart as long as you don't forget about me."

Sniffling a little bit before he raised his head, Naruto, for the first time in a number of years, finally revealed a heart melting smile. "Thank you Ryuu-niichan. Thank you for wanting someone like me." After seeing his otouto's smile, Ryuuhei could only smile back in return before hugging Naruto again.

"And thank you Naruto, for wanting to be a part of my family. I'll always be watching you and I'll do my best to make you happy and protect you. I promise." After which Naruto looked up and through teary yet happy eyes, he replied with a smile so bright the sun looked dull in comparison.

"You already have, Ryuu-niichan!"

(Flashback end)

Sniffling and nodding his head, Naruto looked up at Ryuuhei and repeated the words that he told him all those years ago after they made their bond as brothers. "You said that you'll always be watching over me and that you'll always try to protect and make me happy." After repeating his older brother's words, Naruto received another round of head ruffling from Ryuuhei.

"That's right, so don't be sad alright. I'll always be in your heart as long as you never forget about me and the times where we laughed, cried, and enjoyed with each other alright? And here, I have something for you. An anniversary present, it's been 3 years since we made that promise to each other remember?" Ryuuhei said in a happy tone, handing Naruto a simple black and white scroll.

Looking at his bother then reaching timidly for the scroll, Naruto looked at it before voicing his curiosity. "Ryuu-nii, what's in here? It looks like a normal scroll, is it another scroll for history or training exercises?"

"Yeah, that scroll contains everything that I've collected over the years including my family's scrolls, various weapons including my personal ones, and other things that you'll have to find out yourself." Before giving his brother a smile and patting him on the head. "But hey, we'll save that for next time alright? Get home and we'll pick it up next time alright!"

Wiping the rest of his tears away, Naruto returned his brother's smile before giving him a hug which was returned ten-fold. As he headed home for the night, Naruto felt something inside of his heart nagging at him to stay with his brother no matter what he said, but he figured it was because of the talk they had earlier. His brother would never leave him, especially after the talk of him possibly dying, right?

The next day, Ryuuhei never showed up.

A Son Forgotten

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><p>Jutsu list:<p>

**Rasengan** - **Spiralling Sphere**: A-Rank Ninjutsu

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading guys! Leave a review and tell me what you think of my writing and story so far alright!<strong>

**As for how some characters look, I have a hard time picturing characters unless they've a solid description which is something I can't do at all, I'll give you all what I kind of imagined them to look like with the changes in the story. **

**Mito **will based on **Ayane from "Dragon's Rioting" **

**Menma **is based ****on ******Naruto from "Naruto" **

**Narumi **is based ****on ******Naruto's Sexy Jutsu form from "Naruto"**

**Naruto **is based ****on**** Cloud Strife from "Final Fantasy"****

****Ryuuhei **is based ****on ****Zack Fair from "Final Fantasy"******

******While most characters from the story will have their default appearance from the original story unless stated otherwise and if they are different they'll be listed at the end of the story like this.******


	3. Chapter 2

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Wow guys, thanks so much for all of your feedback! I got a couple complaints, but the praise definitely outnumbers and overpowers it! I really am thankful that all of you are supporting this story and that I can meet your expectations! Though, I don't think I'll be able to consistently pump out a chapter a day, that's just way too extreme for me, haha! Well hopefully you all enjoy this chapter! Lets get on with the readin' shall we!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 2<p>

(Scene change - Spiritual plane)

Within the void of the spiritual plane, two beings of immeasurable power were discussing a topic brought up after 10 years of waiting. The first resembled a tall, fit, sickly looking yet handsome man with snow white hair. In contrast to his appearance from 10 years ago, he bore more resemblance to a human then the deity that most see him as. This being was known as Shinigami, the one who reigns over those who have died, leading them towards their respective paths in the afterlife. The second was a beautiful, curvaceous woman with long hair as black as the night sky. She was known as the goddess of creation and life, resembling what most would think the giver of life would look like.

In contrast to their status as deity's, they were acting rather human when comparing what they were doing now to what their godly duties were. Shinigami was prostrating in front of his younger sister (imouto) while crying comically as he begged for mercy. Standing tall in front of him with her foot tapping and eyebrow twitching in irritation was a very, very angry Kami. Shinigami swore he could see himself behind her with pitying eyes directed towards himself as he would definitely be going to the after she was done with him.

"Well...? What do you have to say for yourself _A-NI-KI_?" Kami spoke in a syrup sweet sing-song tone of voice, a demonic smile on her face with her eyes closed, her brows still twitching in irritation. After hearing about his "master plan" to remove the child of prophecy from earthly attachments in order to prevent one side from gaining the upper hand due to winning over his heart. However, he removed the attachments that were supposed to reside within _her_ jurisdiction, he dealt with those who were dead and needed to pass over to the after not those who were still living.

"I'm sorry Kami-chan! I was just trying to ensure that the state of the physical world stayed in balance! I wasn't thinking straight! Having to deal with souls and the birth of the child of prophecy was stressful and I didn't want to have to deal with more souls later on if one side gained the advantage! Forgive me! Please!" Begging his imouto for any mercy on his soul, Shinigami pleaded giving his reasons for usurping his control over an issue that belonged to his imouto's domain.

Sighing, Kami stopped her foot from tapping and her brow from twitching. Running her hands down her face, she could only groan at the complications that her idiotic aniki caused. Not only did he interfere with the living, he probably ruined a family because he wanted to skimp out on work in the future. Opening her eyes and revealing her striking emerald green eyes, she glared at her brother. "You idiot! Do you know how much you messed up!? You could have destroyed a family because of your laziness! Your such an idiot! Why do I have to deal with such a lazy, inconsiderate, sloppy, dumb brother like you!" Kami roared, grabbing Shinigami by the collar of his kimono and shaking him violently while angrily lecturing him about his use of "shortcuts" to cut his time dealing with work down. After she finished lecturing her brother, she dropped him, panting trying to catch her breath after her angry lecture.

Laying on the ground with his normally onyx eyes replaced with swirls, Shinigami could only thank whatever other god had saved him from his imouto's wrath. After regaining his conciseness and composure, he explained the situation with the child of prophecy to his sister along with what has happened in his life. Naturally, he was beaten badly, due to his regenerative abilities tied to his status as a god, his imouto doesn't hold back. After his beating his sister looked at him, her eyes still angry but now serious. Seeing the look in his sister's eyes, Shinigami quickly became serious as well.

"Aniki, how do you know that one side won't gain the advantage. From your reports, he doesn't care for his family anymore and by extension the village that they reside in due to their neglect and ignorance of his existence. What's to say that we won't turn on them if another village or power tempts him with the offer of 'power', 'wealth', or 'family'? A child isn't capable of thinking rationally with their mind as most of their logic and reason stems from their emotions. He could be unstable and that could cause an imbalance, you know that just because you can observe him doesn't mean you know the inner workings of his psyche." Kami stated, not trusting that her brother knew what he was doing or even what he was thinking. Removing the love of a family was a twisted act in of itself, but then removing the hope of ever feeling love from the place that was growing up in, that was the most twisted thing that her brother had ever done.

Looking his sister right in her eyes, Shinigami didn't flinch like he normally would from her glare. "Kami-chan. I know that I've made a lot of mistakes in the eternity that we've known each other and I do mean a lot of mistakes. But this isn't a mistake. I know that I removed the feelings of love from that child's family and village, and I know that what you're telling me is true. But what I haven't told you yet are the final pieces of information from my report regarding the one who has taken that child under his wing." At the end of that statement, Kami lost her glare as her eyes widened by minute amount.

"What? Don't tell me that a single person has secured the loyalty of the child of prophecy for themselves?!" Kami shouted, fearing for the state of the physical plane if a corrupted individual had managed to place the child of prophecy under their control. But her concerns were lost as her brother shook his head with a small smile gracing his features.

"No need to be concerned my dear imouto, the one who secured possibly the only position within that child's heart has passed on." At his statement, Kami's eyes widened considerably.

Concern and fear evident in her voice, Kami couldn't help but shout her question at her brother. "Don't tell me that he's unstable now...? There's no way that a child would remain sane having the only source of love ripped from them!" But again, she was met with the same smile as before.

"Like I was saying before you rudely interrupted me Kami-chan," Kami had the decency to blush at her actions. "The one who has shown that child love also made it known that he would be passing on into the after well before his time came. That act alone will most likely cement the fact that the child of prophecy will remain neutral in the physical plane. Though his heart will be frozen over he will not vent his anger and hate on the world, he was raised by one of the Shirokin after all and you know that they were one's who always managed to steel their hearts in times of great pain and hate. He will undoubtedly carry on that ideal, as from what I have seen, he cared a great deal about that person. Now, I will be slowly removing the curse, which in 3 years time will be completely lifted, at which the village's genin exam will commence. By doing that, it will ensure that he will form no permanent bonds with anyone within the village and that his bond to the one who showed him love cements itself within his heart, that'll secure his neutrality within the physical plane."

Looking slightly confused, Kami decided voice her confusion as she didn't understand why he would remain neutral after all that will possibly happen in the future. "Wait, aniki, why would he remain neutral? Won't people ignoring him after he's experienced love make him hate them more? Especially if his family continues to love each other and continues to leave him on the side, or if his siblings or others harass and antagonize him due to him being a social outcast of the village?" But once again, her brother reassured her with a smile.

"Don't worry Kami-chan. He won't give into that hate, he was raised by his 'brother' to be have a strong and sturdy heart that can endure then a weak one which would give into the hate. I assure you on my status as the one who reigns over death and as your older brother that he will not give into the hate that the physical plane has. Trust your aniki once in a while alright?" Shinigami confidently said, looking at his sister with confidence radiating in his eyes.

Her brother's confidence eventually won her over as she accepted his plan. "Alright aniki, I'll trust you. Just don't do this kind of thing ever again without consulting me first ok?" Kami bashfully told her brother.

Chuckling, he wrapped his arm around his sister's neck and pulled her in ruffling her hair as Kami turning bright red with the sudden show of affection. However her blissful moment of bonding with her brother was ruined. "Ne, Kami-chan. Why're you so red? Don't tell me that you're getting sick!? Gods can't get sick can we!?" Her eyebrow started to twitch as her brother immediately started freaking out about gods catching mortal illnesses, until she finally snapped.

Flushing red with anger, Kami kicked her brother where the "spiritual sun don't shine", then she huffed and walked away as her brother collapsed to the ground writhing in agony clutching his blessings. "Hmph, males are all stupid human or god... baka aniki..." Kami angrily said the first part but mumbled the last part, her face still slightly red with anger and embarassment.

(Time skip - 3 years later)

(Scene change - Konoha Academy)

Konoha's Academy, a place for children to prepare for a career of being a shinobi or kunoichi to protect and serve their village. In the classroom being headed by chūnin Iruka Umino and Mizuki were the next generation of potential ninja that would be united under the "Will of Fire", in this particular class held the most notable students in the Academy. Sitting in the front row was Menma Uzumaki-Namikaze with his best friend Kiba Inuzuka, son of the Inuzuka clan head. Beside them were Menma's sisters, Mito and Narumi Uzumaki-Namikaze with their best friends Yakumo Kurama and Hinata Hyuga. Next to them were the Uchiha twins Sasuke and Satsuki, their usual scowls present. Behind them in the second row, were best friends Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi, sons of the Nara and Akimichi clan heads respectively. Next to them sat Ino Yamanaka, daughter of the Yamanaka clan and Sakura Haruno, the daughter of a renown civilian family; best friends and "rivals in love" for the affection of two most popular boys in the class. Finally in the last row of the room sat the quietest individuals of the class; Shino Aburame, son of the Aburame clan head. An isle next to Shino sat Sai, a quiet and artistic individual with no known family. Lastly, next to the window in the back sat Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, the oldest of the Uzumaki-Namikaze siblings and the most distant.

As Iruka and Mizuki called roll before getting ready for the genin exams, everyone quieted down, some nervous others excited for the exam to commence. The exam consisted of multiple parts; a written portion which covered basics in history and tactics. A physical portion which consisted of taijutsu sparring with an instructor and the use of kunai and shuriken. And lastly a ninjutsu portion which tested the proficiency of using the "Academy 3" the 3 being: **Henge no Jutsu****, ****Bunshin no Jutsu****, **and **Kawarimi no Jutsu**. All of which were needed to be used successfully in order for an academy student to pass. However there was an extra credit or replacement opportunity in which if the student performed a jutsu outside of those three, which would replace the one that they had failed to do or add extra points to their exam, which could be the difference between becoming the rookie of the year.

Seeing the looks of apprehension and excitement on his student's faces, Iruka couldn't help but smile and formally begin the exams. "Alright, well I know a lot of you are nervous and excited so let's begin!" After which, they started calling students to test. Overall, all of the students of this class had passed with many exceeding the needed benchmark, which made Iruka a proud teacher. However, when it came to the oldest of the Uzumaki-Namikaze, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty having seen how far behind he was compared to his other students.

He knew about the stigma that Naruto held, being the oldest child of the clan yet being the weakest. Iruka knew that he should've tried to help his student more but he couldn't for some reason, he blamed it on the fact that it would've probably be seen as favoritism and he didn't want that but looking back, it probably would've been the right thing to do, despite what people would have said. Naruto was probably tied for dead-last of the year, next to the children who weren't serious in becoming ninja. He managed to pass by the skin of his teeth on the written and physical exams, scoring usually 1 point over the failing threshold and landing his kunai and shuriken 1 over the needed amount to pass. Something about those results seemed strange to Iruka, but he brushed it off as mere coincidence.

Snapping back to the present, Iruka found himself staring into the navy blue eyes of the very student he was thinking about. No matter how many times he saw it, the lack of life that should be in a student's, no child's eyes, were nonexistent in his. Naruto's eyes were dull and didn't hold the twinkle or spark that other kids his age had, rather his eyes looked like they were neutral to the world. But he quickly regained his focus, and proceeded with the exam.

Smiling widely, Iruka handed Naruto his headband with a congratulation in hand. "Congratulations Naruto! I know that you'll succeed out in the field!" However, instead of a smile or hug, he got a blank stare, a small bow, and a quiet "thank you," before his student left the academy for home. "I feel like you're going to become a great shinobi Naruto. I'm sorry that I couldn't support you through your schooling here, but I'll definitely try and help you out there." Looking at the retreating form of his student, Iruka expressed his final thoughts, before calling the next person in line for the test.

(Scene change - Outside the Academy)

After receiving his headband, Naruto put it into his pocket before he started on his way home. The last few years since his aniki had passed were difficult, not from the treatment that he received from the people around his village, but from the scroll that he received from him. Looking back, when he was coping with Ryuuhei's death he was acting like a spoiled brat who had their favorite toy taken away, angrily lashing out at anyone and hating the world for taking away the one person who cared for him in the world. But that all changed once he actually looked inside of the scroll that his brother had left him.

(Flashback start - 2 and a half years ago)

Huddled on the same shoreline that him and his brother were on when they first met, Naruto still couldn't get over the fact that his brother was gone, even after half a year of grieving.

"Why, why do I always have to have something taken away from me. First it was my family's love and now Ryuu-niichan. Why? Why?! Why!?" Naruto was growing progressively more angry and hateful at this world who took away the only person who cared for him, and was about to do something regrettable that was until a scroll fell out of his backpack as he stood up. Looking down, he immediately recognized it as the last gift he had gotten from both his brother and anyone in the past few years. He had forgotten about it, having never opened it after figuring out that he'd never see his brother again. Holding the scroll carefully, it unraveled it and saw a seal. Recognizing it as a simple storage seal it released whatever was inside, which was a note. Reading it over, Naruto started to tear up, tightening his grip slightly and by extension crumpling the note a little.

_"Naruto, if you're reading this then you probably know that I'm not going to be with you any longer. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Naruto; I'm sorry that I won't get to see you graduate the Academy, I'm sorry I won't get to celebrate your birthdays anymore with you, I'm sorry that I won't be able to embarrass you on a date with your girlfriend, I'm sorry that I'm such a horrible brother. I know that you'll probably never forgive me for leaving you behind but know this, know that I'll always be looking out for you. Even now, I'm looking out for you. I know that your upset, hurt, angry, sad, and a hundred other things but never give into any of those negative emotions otouto; they only lead to pain and more hate. I know that you're stronger then that, I'm the one who did train you remember? _

_Naruto, inside this piece of paper is what I promised you on that day. It contains a large scroll which can only be opened by smearing you blood on it with a little bit of chakra and it contains everything that I said it would. It has my life savings, down to the last ryo sealed within. My family's techniques and secrets, my own techniques and secrets, the weapons that I've collected and my own swords. It also contains all of my research on information on various things in the world that I hope you never reveal to anyone else. In addition it also contains my family's summoning contract, once you're old enough sign it and you'll be reverse summoned to 'Thousand Blade Mountain' the home of the dragons. Yes Naruto, the same dragons that I told you stories about. Once there don't be afraid, they all act mean, big, and scary but once you break past their scales they're all very kind and loyal. Ask for my partner, Jho, and tell him that you're my little brother and he'll defend and vouch for you. After all that is settled find a partner who'll compliment you and that you can bond with. You'll know when you find them, trust me. _

_Naruto, remember that no matter what anyone says, you're the strongest, and kindest person that I've known and had the pleasure to call my otouto. Don't give into the hate that plagues this land, rise above it and prove that you have the blood of a dragon running through your veins. I've made a training schedule of tai, nin, gen, ken, kin, and a little bit of fuinjutsu for you for the next few years along with training from the elders, until you turn 18 and I know that you'll be able to follow it and benefit from it, after that I'm sure you'll have already mastered everything that I've to teach you. Lastly, find a someone who you can relate to and get to know them. Find someone who you can trust without reason and if possible, find happiness with someone Naruto. I know that you'll make me proud, and that you'll become a great shinobi. So until we meet again in the afterlife Naruto, remember that I love you and that I'm always watching over you."_

By the end of the letter, Naruto was sobbing loudly, wiping his tears away with the sleeve of his jacket. After sobbing for over half an hour, Naruto made a promise to himself that he would follow what his brother asked him to do, to train and to hopefully find happiness. But as far as Naruto was concerned, becoming strong was the top priority on his list. The first thing he did was nick his thumb, smear his blood over the seal and begin training. "Ryuu-niichan. I will become strong, so that once we meet again, I'll be able to stand next to you as your brother."

(Flashback end)

Sighing to himself, he could only be embarrassed that he acted like he did, his partner would be mortified if he ever found out. But once he got over Ryuuhei's death, he began to notice things that started to unnerve him greatly. Over the past 2 years, he started to notice that people were starting to pay more attention to him. It originally started out small with people actually looking at him, instead of through him. That would've been fine, as he didn't really want anything to do with people as his only objective was to follow his training schedule, however last year was when it got to the point where they started talking to him. Originally he wanted to ignore them like they had done to him, but he remember that his brother asked him to be above hate and doing that would undoubtedly cause people to hate him, so he settle for giving quick responses which worked for quite some time.

That is until his 'family' started to try to talk to him. Menma was the same arrogant and obnoxious person Naruto remembered him to be. Mito and Narumi acted like nothing had ever come between them, talking to him in a overly familiar way which irritated him to no end, and his parents were the worst. They tried to coddle him like some child, they were a few years late for that as he was already self-sufficient by the time Ryuuhei had "adopted" him as his younger brother. It got worse when they tried to include him into their training sessions, which he always skipped out of, their training years behind his in his opinion. Though he desperately wanted to snap at them and demand the reason as to why they were suddenly acting like he always existed, he knew it would be waste of time. In the end, he treated them the same way he treated everyone else, distant and without any form of attachment. But slowly, Ryuuhei's words of not giving into the hate and finding happiness in his life were starting to take effect on him. While knew he wouldn't love his family he wouldn't hate them either, at least not until they did something to garner one or the other.

His thoughts were broken when he spotted the same people he was just thinking about, his family happily chatting with other families about their kids. Closing his eyes and ignoring the happenings around him, he just carried on his way home, that is until someone put their hand on his shoulder. He didn't even need to open his eyes to know that it belonged to his father Minato. Cracking one eye open, he glanced at his father with the same dull look in his eye and questioned him as to why he was stopped.

"...Is there a reason why you're stopping me?" Naruto asked, his voice quiet without a hint of warmth or familiarity.

Minato had seen his oldest walking out of the classroom alone, without waiting for his siblings to finish. Deciding that it might help mend the relationship that they had, he stopped his son. However, while he expected the tone of voice and look that his son gave him, it still pained him greatly. Over the course of the past 2 years, Minato had begun to notice that he didn't feel the unease that he used to feel when he saw Naruto. Before, he felt the same way he did about a stranger interacting with his family, but that slowly started to change. At first he was suspicious but as time went on, the feeling of unease completely disappeared and it was replaced with a longing to reconnect with his son. However, his plan to reconnect Naruto with the family failed miserably. He avoided speaking to any of them for more than a sentence, two if they were lucky, and when he did speak he spoke with an overly formal manner his voice quiet and without a hint of warmth, not even calling him 'tou-san' and Kushina 'kaa-san' anymore. It was like speaking to a stranger one had just met. Though, Minato wasn't deterred, he was set on reconnecting the bond that they all once had.

"I wanted to ask why you're leaving already, aren't you going to wait for your siblings to finish Naruto?" asked Minato in a soft tone of voice, a voice Naruto had only recently been exposed to personally, and it unnerved him slightly to hear it from someone other then Ryuuhei.

However Naruto answered "I'm sorry Minato-san, but I would rather not wait for them. Please excuse me." Though as he turned to leave, he was met by a red headed missile, his mother Kushina. Kushina like Minato, lost the apprehension that she used to have when she saw and interacted with Naruto and was doing her absolute best to try and get her son back into the family. Though she was met with the same treatment as her husband and everyone else for that manner.

"Naru-chan! Congrats on passing your genin exams! Where were you going? You're going to wait for your siblings to finish right?" Kushina released Naruto from her hug and asked him in confused manner. She then looked at Minato and saw him shake his head which made her frown. "Naru-chan, you need to wait for you siblings you know. It's only polite since they're you family." Kushina scolded Naruto, however he just looked back at her with the same blank navy blue eyes before retorting.

"Kushina-san, you know that they've never been made to wait for me before. Why should I be expected to wait for them when they haven't shown the same courtesy to me?" Naruto questioned, and Kushina winced at this dismissal of calling her "Kaa-can" but brushed it off, though she found herself unable to answer his question. He was right in his statement, she never made any of her other children wait for their older brother, but this only serve to fuel her desire to unite her family once and for all. "Naru-chan, I know that we're not on the best terms as family. I know that for a long, long time we've been very bad parents and your siblings haven't been the best either. But we're still family you know, and family needs to care for each other and stick together." Kushina spoke in a soft tone, looking at her oldest in the eyes.

Once Kushina said those words, Naruto's mind flashed back to the memories that he shared with Ryuuhei, then to the words that he had told him about what a real family was. "_ Family is supposed to love you unconditionally, and care for you without having to be asked to. From what you've told me, they aren't your family. They're just people who share the same blood as you, that alone does not define family you know._" Snapping out of his short stroll through his memories, he figured it would be less of a hassle if he just entertained their request. Crossing his arms, Naruto turned towards the Academy waiting for his siblings to emerge.

Seeing their oldest listen to their request and accept it made Minato and Kushina happy beyond words if the matching smiles on their faces were any indication. They knew that they would have a long and difficult road towards rebuilding their relationship with their son, but they owed it to him. The guilt and shame that plagued their hearts were unfathomable seeing how their oldest was practically a stranger in his own family tore at their hearts, and they knew that it was their fault and theirs alone. Over the last 2 years, the feelings that they should've always had for him slowly started to surface for the first time in their lives, that alone confused and frightened them. From viewing their oldest son as a stranger and potential threat to the safety of their family to seeing him as what he really was, as their oldest son who they love and care for, it baffled them to no end. But after having a heart to heart with each other, Minato and Kushina had promised to reconnect their oldest and give him the love that he deserved and more. Soon, the two were broken out of their thoughts as they were the tell tale signs of their youngest daughter if her shouting of "Tou-san" and "Kaa-chan" were any indication.

Narumi's day couldn't have gotten better, she had just passed her genin exams and made it as one of the top contenders for "Kunoichi of the Year" and "Rookie of the Year" along with her brothers and sister. Though, there was one things that did make her sad and that her heart yearned for, that was the love and attention of her oldest brother, Naruto.

She knew that she was never the ideal little sister towards her brother. Ever since she could remember, she felt afraid of him. When they were growing up, she could remember that whenever she would try and ask him to play with her or talk to him, there would be a feeling of fear that would overtake her heart and cause her to stop. It only got worse as she grew up, as she got older whenever she would see her big brother, something inside of her as a human being screamed that he was dangerous and to stay away from him at all costs. Of course, she was a child then and followed her instincts, but looking back she regretted every moment of it. Though, the last two years were strange. The primal fear that she had for her brother slowly started to fade away, and in its place was replaced by adoration and desire for her brother to accept and forgive her for all she's done. Now the only thing that stood in her way of loving her brother was him, himself. But that wasn't going to stop her from getting what she wanted, everyone knew that an Uzumaki never gave up until they've got what they wanted.

After catching the sight of her mother's striking crimson hair and her father's brilliant blonde, Narumi cheerfully ran towards them. Happiness and excitement filling her heart, she was about to launch herself at them until she caught sight of a slightly darker shade of blonde next to them. It was her brother, Naruto. Her brother was... waiting for her? He was really waiting for her? Did he finally forgive her? A light dusting of pink colored her cheeks as she changed the trajectory of her hug and instead of her parents, launched herself at her brother.

"Naru-nii!" Narumi squealed happily and with affection, as she met her target, wrapping her brother in a hug. "Naru-nii, did you wait for me!? Did you really! I hope you didn't wait too long! I'm sorry if you did! I really am!" Narumi fired off questions as to how long her brother had waited and if he did it espeically for her.

To say Naruto was uncomfortable would be putting it lightly, while he did expect to be greeted by his exuberant younger sister, he wasn't prepared to be glomped by her. Unless it was contact from sparring, he didn't do well with physical contact with others, he wasn't quite used to it yet. Slowly, he managed to detach the blonde from himself and was met with a pout in return. "To answer your question Narumi, I am waiting for all of you to finish. And no, I didn't wait long." Naruto replied in his usual deadpanned voice. Though that didn't deter Narumi for long, after hugging and getting a congratulations from her parents she went right back to Naruto and hugged his arm to her chest with a cherry smile on her face.

"Ok Naru-nii! We'll for Mito-nee and Menma-nii together then!" Narumi chirped with a smile on her face, much to Naruto's chagrin. Naruto could only sigh as his sister giggled as she tightened her grip on him. Off on the side, Minato and Kushina could only smile at the scene, Narumi always managed to ignored the cold and distant aura that Naruto had and it always warmed their hearts to see their youngest able to breach the armor around their son's heart. Soon, they spotted the blonde and crimson hair of their remaining 2 children, both with smiles on their faces.

Menma was feeling like he was on top of the world, not only did he destroy the genin exam, he was sure that he'd be the one who'd become "Rookie of the Year". However, his mood quickly rose as he saw his family waiting for him with smiles on their faces. Quickening his pace, he ran towards them only for his mood to drop like a rock in lake. He saw his brother there as well. It was well known in the village that Menma didn't like his brother, the word most would use would be detested or disgusted, however that wasn't how Menma truly felt. Menma had admired his older brother when they were young, always imitating what he would do when they were children. But as he grew older, he began to feel inferior to his brother for some reason. It only grew as they did, Menma becoming more vocal and demanding when Naruto would speak his mind or give a suggestion, in order to overrule Naruto's suggestion with his own. Eventually, Menma's feeling of inferiority turned into dislike which eventually created a gap between the two.

During the past 2 years, Menma's feelings of inferiority and hate began to fade away, though he still did not view Naruto as his equal nor treat him any differently. Menma had seen his grades both written and physical, and he knew that he was definitely stronger and smarter then his brother. Menma wouldn't be apologizing to his older brother anytime soon, not until Naruto is able to stand as his equal. Though in a small part of Menma's heart, he honestly did want to become close to his brother again so that they would be able to do things that only brothers are be able to do like talk about which girl is the cutest, pulling pranks together, and especially train together. But being as prideful as he was, Menma wouldn't be admitting that anytime soon.

His face visibly souring, Menma sneered at his brother. "What the heck are you doing here loser? Shouldn't you still be begging sensei to let you pass?" Menma spat out, his eyes narrowed.

Minato and Kushina were well aware of their sons' volatile relationship but they didn't think that it was this bad. But before they could say anything, the final member of their family spoke out in her older brother's defense.

Mito was happy, rather she was ecstatic. She had seen her older brother pass his test and the possibility that they would be on the same team had increased. Like Narumi, when she was young, Mito had a primal fear of her older brother for some strange reason. But like everyone else, within the last 2 years her fear disappeared and was replaced with the same adoration and desire for her older brother's love and affection that Narumi had. Though unlike her sister, Mito didn't rush in like Narumi did, her philosophy was try and slowly work her way back into her older brother's heart. But there were times where she would break that, and this was one of those times.

"Menma, didn't you see that Naruto-nii was one of the first to earn his headband? You're always sitting in the front aren't you?" Mito said her eyes narrowed at Menma's insult towards her older brother. Though, when she saw her younger sister so closely attached to him, Mito's eye twitched in both irritation and jealousy. But before anything else happened, Naruto decided to finally speak up.

"Well, now that the exams are over I'll be seeing you all later." Managing to once again pull his arm free of his youngest sister's grasp Naruto started walking away, unconcerned with the slightly hurt look in his family's eyes and the angry look in Menma's.

"Guess making him wait for everyone to finish was asking for too much Mina-kun." Kushina said sadly looking at the retreating form of her son. Feeling an arm wrap around her waist, Minato pulled her in close and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"It'll be ok Kushi-chan." After comforting his wife, Minato turned towards his remaining children. "Alright kids, why don't we go get something special to eat in honor of all of you becoming genin!" Instantly he got eager nods from his kids, though one voiced her concerns.

"Ne, Tou-san. What about Naru-nii? Shouldn't we go get him?" Narumi asked the question on both her and Mito's mind, and even a tiny bit of Menma's. Smiling at her consideration of her older brother, Minato patted her head.

"You know how your brother likes his space Umi-chan, we'll all be able to have dinner together one day. I promise." Seeing his daughter sadly nod her head, he decided to take lead them into the village for a night of celebrations.

(Scene change - Unknown lake)

Arriving at his destination just as the sun was starting to set, Naruto once again found himself at the lake where he and Ryuuhei met, a gentle breeze blowing. Smiling slightly, he reminisced about the fond memories that he had with his older brother. Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out a familiar scroll. Unsealing small, small bottle of sake and saucer from a seal that read "Graduation", Naruto filled up a saucer and smiling, he poured it carefully into the lake before filling it once again to down it himself. The bottle only held enough sake for two saucers and that was enough for Naruto. Laying down on his back his arms crossed behind his head, he let his mind flow back to the times he shared with his older brother as he closed his eyes.

As Naruto listened to the soft blow of the breeze, he didn't notice the silhouette of a person sit down next to him. As the wind blew his hair gently, the silhouette slowly reached over and ruffled his hair softly. As he felt a very warm and familiar sensation, Naruto slowly descended to the world of sleep, as his mind slowed the ambient noises of the wind quieted to nothingness, he caught a voice in the wind. Naruto fell asleep, never noticing the tears that were falling down his face and the small smile on his lips.

"_Congratulations otouto._"

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading guys! Leave a review and tell me what'cha think about the story and my writing so far!<strong>

**As for the gods, well I kind of had a hard time imagining how they'd look. But this is what I thought mine would look.**

****Shinigami **is based ****on**** Sephiroth from "Final Fantasy" ******

******Kami is based on **Kyōka** ****from "Dragon's Rioting"**

**Satsuki is based on Kuroyukihime from "Accel World"  
><strong>


	4. Chapter 3

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hiya guys! Back with another update, sweet right! Haha, well I really want to thank all of you for your taking the time to read my story! I got some reviews that hurt, you know like when you bang your elbow on something, that kinda hurt. Haha, but seriously to those people, thanks for taking the time to read this even if you didn't like it and I'm sorry that it wasn't your cup of tea. To everyone else, thank you for the kind words and I'll continue to write for you guys, yes you! Well I've been getting some questions on the incest topic, I wasn't really going to go for full on Bro-Sis loving, but more along the lines of stealing kisses and that kind of thing, I'm saving more of the romantic love for another story in the future. Naruto will be romantically paired with someone, but I don't know who yet. XD But anywho, let's get to this reading thing eh!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 3<p>

(Scene change - Hokage's office)

Inside the office of the Hokage, two figures could be seen discussing a topic that was on the minds of everyone who were associated with the newly graduated genin, that topic being the teams that they would be placed on. Heading the meeting was of course, Minato, being the Hokage he had the final word as to who was on what team with which instructor. Given a record of each individual genin, listing their strengths, weaknesses, special attributes, and other notable traits.

The second was the final of the Densetsu no Sannin, Orochimaru. Orochimaru was once considered a traitor, having been arrested after suspicion about what went on in the lab that he operated. Having no doubts about his innocence, he willingly let the anbu squad led by Minato and Jiraiya search his lab. However, what he didn't expect was to be attacked by his best friend and Minato then have suppression seals put on him. At first he was outraged, demanding why he was being arrested, but soon that anger turned into shock as he was saw what was inside of his lab. His lab, normally spotless and sterile, was covered in blood and gore. At first, he thought it was a genjutsu that someone had placed on him but after futilely trying to release it, he knew that it wasn't an illusion. After he was taken to Ibiki Morino for interrogation. Though, after he asked that they have Inochi Yamanaka to prove his innocence by reviewing the past few hours of his life they apologized and released the seals on him. During the interrogation, they had found that it his second apprentice Kabuto who had framed him. Kabuto had been stealing information and resources from his lab for his ex-teammate Hiruko, who was banished after his experiments on human subjects were found by Orochimaru and Jiraiya. Though, they were unable to find Kabuto even with multiple squads of anbu dispatched throughout the village.

After the incident, Minato and Jiraiya apologized for their mistake, Jiraiya espeically. However, he brushed them off saying that they were only doing their duty and that he would have done the same. Originally he was bitter and angry that his sensei and the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had chosen Minato as the Yondaime. But after Hiruzen talked to him about his reason, he grudgingly accepted. But slowly, he grew to like the boy thanks in part to Jiraiya forcing him out of his lab to meet with him for a drink from time to time. Now, he was the head of the Torture and Interrogation Force and main consultant when it came to building teams as he oversaw all outgoing genin from the Academy and had some insight as to what went on inside of their minds due to his position.

"That being said Minato, what do you think of those for the potential team builds?" Orochimaru asked, showing Minato a diagram with multiple different team compositions, ranging from tracking, assault, and support. After pointing out the candidates that would only be able to fill one role due to their skill set, he brought out a chart showing the candidates that could fill multiple roles in a squad.

"So far the teams look great, thank you Orochimaru!" Minato expressed his sincere thanks, as squad building in the past was a difficult process of basically putting genin together and seeing if they would work or not. But with Orochimaru, squads that have been assembled with his insight have had a 94.7% rate of successful squad dynamics. "But I am concerned about one thing."

Orochimaru was a little suprised as usually Minato almost never any qualms over the suggestions that he made, though he had a sneaking suspicion as to what it was about. "What's your concern Minato? It's over your children isn't it?" His suspicions were validated when Minato rubbed the back of his head in embarassment.

Minato voiced his confusion as to why his oldest wasn't included on the possible squad list. "Yeah, you hit it right on the mark Orochimaru. I wanted to know I didn't see Naruto's name on any of the squad suggestions that you showed me." After hearing his question, Orochimaru sighed.

"Minato, you and I both know that your oldest son was treated like he never existed by both his family and the village, myself included. Though we both know that, because of that he doesn't trust anyone not even you." Orochimaru stated, seeing how Minato was about to retort. "Do you know how he performed in the Academy Minato?"

After hearing the question, Minato frowned and nodded his head. "I do Orochimaru, from what I hear from practically everyone, he's the dead last of the Academy. Even more so then the students who weren't serious on becoming ninja. His performance on the written and physical exams bring barely passable, it's actually a miracle that he passed." Minato said, his voice thick with guilt and shame.

"That being said, have you ever seen his actual scores and performance on the written and physical exams?" Seeing Minato shake his head in the negative, Orochimaru took out Naruto's file and handed it to Minato. After taking it and opening, he didn't see what Orochimaru was trying to hint at. Though he did wince when he saw how poorly his son did. Seeing that Minato didn't get it, Orochimaru could only sigh. "You don't see it do you Minato, isn't it suspicious that his grades are more varied? How on every single exam, physical and written, he has managed to score 1 point above the failing threshold. That alone warrants suspicion, it's as if he is deliberately placing himself low in order to conceal his strengths, now that I'm thinking about it more clearly, I'm sure that he's intentionally hiding his skills. Though for what reason, I'm not sure of." Orochimaru said, his brows furrowed in thought.

Minato just couldn't wrap his mind around why his oldest would intentionally hide his skill if he was as skilled as Orochimaru was making him out to be. "But why hide his skills? If he has the skill, why doesn't he show them to everyone? It sounds as if you're making him out to be a prodigy, if he was, he'd be the talk of the village!"

"That's why I didn't place him with any of squads that I made Minato. I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but my personal assessment of him is that he's a potential flight risk. He trusts no one in the village and because of that has no loyalty or love for it either." As soon as Orochimaru finished his assessment, he was met with an angry and accusatory glare from Minato.

"What are you implying Orochimaru? Are you saying that my son is a potential threat to his squad mates and sensei, and a threat to the village?" Minato wasn't happy that Orochimaru thought of his son as a threat to the safety of his ninja and village. He knew that his some wasn't treated the best, but he wouldn't turn on the village. Would he?

Seeing that Minato was feeling conflicted on this matter, Orochimaru relented. "Minato, I'll assign Naruto to a squad on the condition that my apprentice be his sensei. Not only because I trust her and you trust me, but she's one of the only people in the village that would be able to assess his mental state from observation alone. The only others being myself, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Ibiki, and Shizune. But I don't think that they should be removed from their posts for one genin, even if that genin is possibly unstable and your son."

Minato thought about the situation deeply, on one hand he wanted to trust his instincts that his son wasn't a threat but considering that Orochimaru said about him trusting no one was undoubtedly true, eventually, he had to place his village over his son as much as it pained him to do so. "Alright Orochimaru, let's go with your plan. I'll trust that Anko won't be too... Anko, right?" Seeing Orochimaru's wry smile in return, he could only hope that his son doesn't get pushed to the edge by his sensei.

"Well now that we have that settled, let's rebuild the squads then. Starting with the ones who have the most flexibility in regards to possible positions." As he brought out a rooster and proceeded to highlight and circle prime individuals.

(Scene change - Naruto's training ground)

Back in the area that he and Ryuuhei had first met, Naruto was going over his plan for the future. Having become a genin, he had also become an adult in the world. His first order of business was to move out of the compound that his family lived in, and find his own place to call home.

The second regarded a much more serious topic, the being the dead last facade that he had built up over the past 4 years. It had worked as he intended in getting people to underestimate him, even if he was the son of the Hokage. But the problem now lied in whether or not he actually started to act seriously. Making such a large jump in skill would definitely raise alarms with everyone that knew him, espeically his family, but considering no one ever paid attention to him, he could just write it off as him not trying because it wouldn't be worth the effort. That seemed like a plausible yet paper-thin excuse, but it'd do, he didn't need to explain his reasons to anyone.

The final topic was one that was a bit touchy, but he needed to get over it. Now that he would be moving out and he was an adult, he needed to get over the fact the village basically erased his existence from it. While he wasn't going to betray the village or curse it, he wouldn't love it. It'd be just a place where he ate, slept, and worked for; the same would be applied to the people of the village. He'd act professionally with his teammates, his sensei, the merchants, villagers, other ninja, and his family. He wasn't going to let anywhere near his heart ever again, he'd pardon their past transgressions but that'd be it. His plan set, he headed towards his soon to be ex-home.

(Time skip - One week later)

(Scene change - Konoha Academy: Iruka's classroom)

Seeing the uncontained energy and excitement of his students, Iruka could only smile at them. Until they were ignoring the fact that the bell had rung. "Alright everyone, SIT DOWN AND QUIET!" Implementing his village renown **Kyotou no Jutsu**, his students immediately quieted down and finally focused their attention to him. "Good, now that I have your attention I'll be naming the squads that the Hokage has assigned you to."

Starting with the students with limited skill sets, the squad list slowly approached the rounded genin. "Team 7 will consist of: Menma, Mito and Narumi Uzumaki-Namikaze. Your sensei Kakashi Hatake " At that moment, many groans and complaints rang out about the newly dubbed 'Strongest Team', 'Team Hokage's Kids'. Most were about the loss of their crush to be on their team. Though the genin involved only let their heads pound the desk the unfortunate luck of having to stick with and deal with their siblings even when out on missions, and of having to deal with their perverted and habitually late older brother figure.

After quieting down the class once more, Iruka continued. "Team 8 will consist of: Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame. Your sensei, Kurenai Yūhi. Team 9 is still active. Team 10 will consist of: Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi. Your sensei, Asuma Sarutobi." At that, Ino practically broke the desk she was at when her head slammed onto it. Crying about how she was put on the worst possible team, while behind her Shikamaru muttered a quiet "Mendōkusei".

His eye twitching slightly at the rude behavior of his student, Iruka could only sigh before continuing. "Team 11 will consist of: Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Sai. Your sensei, Genma Shiranui." Though, he was once again interrupted when Sakura rose out of her seat and flashed a victory sign at Ino claiming that the power of love prevails over all obstacles, as Sasuke let his head drop.

For the final time, Iruka could only drop his head at his student's behavior before calling out the final team. "The final team will be Team 12, which will consist of: Yakumo Kurama, Satsuki Uchiha, and Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. Your sensei, Anko Mitarashi." At that, the class went deathly quiet and some slowly turned their eyes towards the back where their most distant classmate sat. Of course, the lull was broken when Iruka announced that their sensei's would be coming to pick them up soon.

As soon as that statement left his mouth, Kurenai arrived to pick up her team. Following her were Asuma and Genma. Left in the room were Team 7 and 12, Team 7 already knowing that they had a long wait ahead of them. After half an hour, the window flew open, followed by a kunai attached to a banner that read "The great and sexy Anko Mitarashi has arrived", as a smoke bomb went off. Out of the smoke emerged Anko wearing her signature grin and glint in her eyes.

Seeing the disbelief in the eyes of the genin, she couldn't help but snicker at them. "Well, which of you brats belong to me! If you're a part of my team, then we're meeting at training ground 12 in 15 minutes! Don't be late or I'll hunt you down, on second thought please be late! It'll make thinks more fun for me! Ja ne!" After saying her part, she jumped out the window. After processing what just happened, Naruto let out a sigh as he stood up and walked out the door towards the training ground. Seeing their teammate leave, Satsuki and Yakumo followed him out the door leaving Team 7 behind.

(Scene change - Training ground 12)

Arriving with 3 minutes left to spare, Naruto, Satsuki, and Yakumo stood awkwardly as they waited for their sensei to arrive. But they didn't have to wait long, as a pouting Anko dropped from the tree that they were standing under.

"You brats are no fun at all, it would've been more interesting and fun if I had to find and drag you here. But oh well, why don't we get to know each other!" Anko happily said, but instead of a quick response she got blank stares. But that was quickly broken when Yakumo raised her hand to ask a question.

"Umm, Anko-sensei, could you begin? I don't think that we know the proper way to introduce ourselves." Yakumo asked, unsure on how to break the ice with her new team. But her concerns were eliminated as her sensei gave a grin and started things off.

"Well I'm Anko Mitarashi as you all know! My likes are snakes, Orochimaru-sensei, my best friend Kurenai, dango, poison, sharp things, and reading! My hate perverts, rapists, people who act like they're superior to others, bad dango, and a boring book. My hobbies are working at the T&I Division and hanging out with my friends. And my goal is to one day surpass Orochimaru-sensei as his apprentice! Now that I'm done, why don't you go next since you asked!" After her introduction, Anko turned towards Yakumo and decided that she was the next one to introduce herself.

"I'm Yakumo Kurama, nice to meet all of you. My likes are reading, training with my tutor Kurenai-sensei, reading, mochi and being with my family. I also hate perverts, rapists, people who mock others for stupid reasons or reasons outside of their control, and people who look down on genjutsu users. My hobbies are cooking, gardening, flower arranging and training. My goal is to repay Minato and Kushina-sama for sealing off the Ido and giving me back my life, and to surpass Kurenai-sensei as a genjutsu master." Yakumo stated with a small fire burning in her eyes towards the end. After her introduction, Anko pointed towards the scowling Satsuki.

"Nice to meet you Yakumo-chan! So you're the one that Nai-chan always talks about huh! Why don't you go next Miss Sunshine!" As Yakumo blushed slightly, Satsuki growled at Anko and received a grin in return.

"I'm Satsuki Uchiha. My likes are training, reading, cooking and gardening. I hate are perverts, rapists, weaklings, useless people, and people who break their promises. My hobbies are pretty much the same as my likes. And my goal is to surpass my brother Itachi as a ninja and my mother as a woman." Satsuki said in her usual snarky tone though it turned surprisingly bashful when she mentioned surpassing her mother as a woman.

Smirking at the her, Anko finally pointed to the only male member of the squad and gestured him to begin. "Alright, well the ladies are done so why don't you introduce yourself Blondie!" Half expecting a twitching of the eyebrows or a glare, Anko was a little suprised when all she received was a blank stare from Naruto.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. I don't have many likes, though one is ramen. I don't have many dislikes either, though most of them are shared between us like perverts and rapist. My hobby is training. As for my goal... My goal is to make someone proud of me." Introducing himself in his usual deadpan, Naruto finished his introduction. Though, his goal caused quite a stir within his squad, all of them knew that he had no bonds to speak of so this person he wanted to make proud had to have been someone special.

"And who would that be Blondie?" Very curious, Anko asked the obvious question however she was met with his patented blank stare once more followed by "It doesn't concern you." Which irked her a lot, but instead of acting on it now she decided it was a good time to let her genin know about the test that they would be given.

"Well, now that most of us have introduced ourselves," she shot Naruto a look. "you're still not truly genin of the leaf yet. You all still have one more test that you need to get through before you're field ready! So, tomorrow! Meet back here at 10am sharp and don't eat any breakfast, I promise you that you'll just see it again within the hour!" With that, Anko disappeared in a swirl of leaves using the **Shunshin no Jutsu**.

After their sensei left, Satsuki and Yakumo gave each other a glance. They weren't on the best terms but weren't on the worst either. Most of this stemmed from Satsuki and Mito's rivalry, Yakumo somehow getting caught in the middle. However, they were on a team now so it was in their best interest to get along, at least that was Yakumo's train of thought.

"Satsuki, I know that we're not best friends or friends at all, so why don't we start now since we're on a team now?" Yakumo asked, hoping that she'd accept her offer of friendship.

Satsuki really wanted to just leave and go home to train or cook or do something other then get along with of Mito's friends, but she knew that she'd get an earful from her parents and older brother if she didn't at least try to get to know her, so she just sighed and accepted. "Sure, whatever. Just don't try and be all chummy with me, we're not friends just teammates. And don't tell Mito either, I'd rather not hear her complain about how I'm stealing her best friend."

Nodding to Satsuki, they two began to head towards the center of the village, but before they left the training ground, they froze. Remembering that they had one more teammate, they turned around to see that he was already walking away reading a scroll. Looking at each other, they didn't know what they should do, though they settled on trying to invite him, considering how that was the most that they've heard him talk so they assumed that it would be alright to ask.

"Naruto, do you want to come get dinner with us? We might as well considering we're all on a team now, so we should try to get along." Yakumo asked, as they managed to catch up to the blonde. However, she was met with silence as he was too engrossed in his scroll to notice her and Satsuki. While Yakumo was a little amused, having had moments where she also tuned out the world when reading, Satsuki didn't take being ignored too kindly. Growling while she stomped towards him, she grabbed his shoulder and forced him to stop.

Naruto was almost finished with the scroll that the elders had given him when he felt a hand on his shoulder and smelled sweat with the hint of "lily-of-the-valley", and upon turning around he was met with an angry Uchiha.

"...Is there something that I can help you with Satsuki-san?" Naruto asked, wondering why the usually brooding and scowling girl stopped him.

"Are you weak and deaf?! We've been trying to get your attention for the past minute! Kami, why did I have to be paired with you out of all of the other Uzumaki-Namikaze, Menma would've been better, I'd even settle for Mito." As Satsuki went on a tangent, Naruto could only stare at her blankly, as Yakumo sighed beside her. Having had enough of her rambling, Naruto poked her on the forehead similar to how he had seen her older brother do and the reaction was almost instantaneous as she snapped out of her rambling immediately.

"Wha-What are you doing you idiot! Just don't touch me whenever you feel like it you pervert!" Satsuki shouted, her cheeks tinged red with embarrassment and anger. It was then that Yakumo decided to step in before things got even more complicated then they already were.

"Naruto, Satsuki and I wanted to know if you wanted to get dinner together to celebrate our new status as a team and to get to know each other better. So will you come with us?" Yakumo asked politely, hoping that he'd accept their offer. They got their answer when the scroll he was reading disappeared in a puff of smoke and he stared at them with his ever blank eyes.

"You two have a point, we might as well get to know our strengths and weaknesses, Knowing how we can complement each other could greatly benefit us in the future, including on the test tomorrow." Naruto stated and from the stunned expressions on his teammate's faces, they weren't exactly thinking on the same terms.

After that a blank faced Naruto, a wryly laughing Yakumo, and a scowling pink faced Satsuki enter a popular barbeque restaurant to get to know each other better. For the better portion of the night, there were laughs heard from the booth as the three or rather Yakumo and Satsuki exchanged stories from their past while Naruto choose to remain silent as he didn't have many fond memories that he was willing to share, though he did share a story about an incident he was involved in that included a corrupt merchant, bees, honey, ants, paint, a bikini, and cameraman.

He didn't expect the normally brooding and scowling Satsuki to burst out laughing and snorting as tears began to fall from her eyes or the reserved and polite Yakumo to laugh so much that she started crying with her sides hurting. The night ended with the three parting ways, Yakumo and Satsuki in better moods and a small smile gracing their faces.

(Scene change - Uzumaki-Namikaze compound)

As he walked through the front door, he was greeted by the sight of his family chatting and eating dinner happily amongst each other. Though he was used to the sight, it still caused a dull ache in his heart. As he was quietly making his way upstairs towards his room, he was spotted by his more expressive sister before he could make it up the stairs.

As Narumi was happily chatting with her family about her new team, though her brother and sister lacked the same enthusiasm she had, she spotted a familiar mop of blonde hair and her night instantly brightened up even more. Standing up on her chair, which Kushina instantly started scolding her, she called out to him.

"Naru-nii! Where have you been! Why're you home so late? Come down here and have dinner with us!" As soon as those words left her mouth, the rest of her family's heads snapped to where she was looking. But she never got a response as they heard the door to his room being closed softly. Knowing that her brother wasn't going to be joining them, Narumi sank back into her chair and slowly continued to eat, sad and hurt by his indifference.

While Narumi quieted down, Mito continued looking where she had seen her brother with longing in her eyes before she went back to her meal quieter then before. Menma continued seemingly unaffected by his brother's indifference, though inside he was wondering what his weak older brother was doing out so late. Minato and Kushina were both hurt and upset by the attitude and behavior of their oldest. Hurt that he didn't greet them when he got home and upset that he made their youngest sad by his attitude. The two exchanged sad looks before they continued with dinner, knowing that the happy mood and light was spoiled.

(Scene change - Naruto's room)

As Naruto entered his room, he contemplated on what would be the test for tomorrow. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of his teammates, it would definitely make things go by much more smoothly then having to assume what they were in the heat of the moment. Most likely they would have to go on a mission as a show of proficiency and their ability to operate as a unit. Starting tomorrow, he would be able to drop his facade and actually experience the world as a capable shinobi. Laying down on his bed, Naruto slowly fell into a dreamless sleep.

(Scene change - Training ground 12)

As the morning sun laid lazily overhead; Naruto, Satsuki, and Yakumo were sitting under the large sakura tree that laid in the center of the training ground. Satsuki had her scowl on her face, though she was sneaking side glances at the only male member of their squad. Yakumo was reading a book, and like Satsuki, she was sneaking glances at Naruto before focusing back to her book and repeating the process. Naruto was immersed in a scroll that contained information about team dynamics and how to best operate as a unit; including tactics, positions, weakness, and mistakes. Eventually, the lull of the moment was broken as their sensei made her explosive entrance, literally, as a smoke bomb exploded with her jumping out of it, her signature grin on her face.

"Well looks like you're all ready for the test I assume!" seeing the scowl, small frown, and blank look; Anko couldn't help but sweat drop slightly at the less then expressive faces of her students. "Well then, why don't we begin! The test we'll be having is the good old fashion bell test! All you have to do is take a bell from me and you pass! Simple right!" Anko said happily, pulling out 2 silver bells out of her pocket. As soon as they saw the bells, Yakumo voiced the concern that all genin who received the test had.

"Anko-sensei, but they are three of us. Why are there only two bells?" As soon as the words left her mouth, Anko revealed a devious smirk before saying something that instantly set her genin off.

"Because, the one who doesn't manage to get a bell from me is going to go back to the Academy and repeat the whole thing over again!" Anko chirped happily, relishing in the tense and stressed expressions on her genin's faces. Though, she did notice that the only male of the squad had his blank stare still in place.

"Alright then! Let the test, BEGIN!" As soon as she said that, the two female members rushed into the woods leaving her and Naruto behind. Raising an eyebrow, she gave Naruto an confused look. "Umm... You know that you're supposed to hide and plan right?" However, instead of a reply, Naruto walked back to the sakura tree and sat down. Opting to finish reading the scroll in partake in the test at the moment.

Anko could only gawk at the audacity of the kid, not only did he not answer her, which alone would've involved her using sharp things to make him answer her, he ignored the fact that he had a test going on. But she was broken out of her thoughts as a volley of shuriken forced her to jump back to avoid being hit.

Satsuki was angry, she was angry and tense, most of which came from the stupid test that her sensei had given them. Not only would one of them fail, they'd have to go through the whole Academy again and that was something she wouldn't be taking a part of. After she had hidden herself in a few meters back, she saw her idiot of a teammate just give up, without lifting a finger. She knew that he was the dead last of the Academy, but that didn't mean that he should give in without a fight. Not that she cared if he passed anything like that, but then she noticed that when he was walking back to the tree her sensei let down her guard and she took advantage of it by throwing a handful of shuriken and charging in.

After closing in the distance between, she started the bout with her sensei off with taijutsu. Anko grinned, seeing that things were finally about to get interesting. Satsuki quickly fell into the rhythm of her clan's **Koenken**. The key component of the Uchiha clan's taijutsu relied heavily on using one's sharingan to predict the moves of the opponent and respond with quick yet powerful blows hence the name. However, Satsuki not having her sharingan yet, couldn't utilize it to its full extent.

Quickly throwing a flurry of jabs and kicks, Satsuki quickly grew frustrated as Anko avoided each of her attacks like they were nothing. Throwing another hook towards Anko's midsection, Satsuki had her wrist grabbed pulled, knocking her off balance. Responding by twisting her body, she tried to deliver an axe kick but hit air as Anko backed away.

"Well I'll admit gaki, you're not too shabby at your taijutsu, for a genin at least." Anko's taunt seemed to have the intended effect as she saw her student's face flush red.

Growling, Satsuki rushed in again and threw another punch that was deflected, quickly spinning around she a backhand at Anko that she avoided by crouching and sweeping Satsuki off her feet. Regaining her balance, Satsuki quickly went through a series of hand seals that made Anko's eyes go wide.

Finishing the last of the seals, Satsuki glared at Anko before taking in a deep breath. "**Suiton: Teppōdama**!" Firing off a quick basketball sized ball of water that hit Anko and sent her flying back before she was replaced with a gouged out log.

"Whoa, that's one dangerous jutsu gaki! I'd be torn up for sure if I got hit by that! You need to be more caref-" Dropping out of a tree, Anko praised and scolded Satsuki but before she finished a rain of kunai forced her to perform another **Kawarimi**.

Jumping out of the brush, Yakumo had a kunai in a reverse-grip as she headed towards Satsuki who wasn't happy to see her. "What are you doing here! I don't need your help to get a bell, you saw that I almost had her right there!" Satsuki was really frustrated, being toyed with by her playful sensei didn't sit well with her at all.

"Satsuki, I know that you're frustrated! But please listen to me!" Though her teammate was irritable, Yakumo knew she had to get her to calm down or else they'd all fail. Seeing the angry but now focused face of her teammate, Yakumo began her assessment of the current situation at hand.

"We know that we need to get those bells right? From what we talked about last night, we don't know any of Naruto's skills and going by his performance in the Academy they probably aren't the best. That being said, I think we'll be able to get those bells with just the two of us. I don't like leaving him behind, I really don't but we need to pass. I think will this will work, so here's the plan." Making a guilty face, Yakumo shot a glance towards their still reading teammate before relaying the plan she had devised to Satsuki.

To say that she was suprised was an understatement, Satsuki had always thought that Yakumo was someone who was all about being friends with everyone but seeing her leave Naruto out didn't sit well with Satsuki for some reason, but she needed to pass so she agreed to the plan that she created, which was crafty in her opinion.

Seeing that her two students were finished with their group huddle, Anko walked out of the brush with her grin still in place. "Are the two of you time with your little team meeting? Come'on, let's get things going again!"

Satsuki and Yakumo flashed through the hand seals for their respective jutsu, with Satsuki rushing in while Yakumo stayed back.

"_Interesting, Satsuki is coming in to apply pressure while Yakumo is most likely setting up a genjutsu to throw me off. Not shabby for a couple of rookies._" Thought Anko as she avoided another **Teppōdama** from Satsuki before she heard Yakumo.

"**Kanashibari no Jutsu**!" Yakumo called out, as Anko felt a slight stiffening in her body as the genjutsu took effect. As Satsuki closed the distance once again, diving low for the bells that were tied to her waist.

As she felt the cool touch of the metal, Satsuki couldn't help but smile as the plan that Yakumo made worked. But as quick as the feeling of success came, it left as Anko grabbed her wrist and locked it behind her back, making Satsuki yelp in pain as she was forced onto the ground.

Yakumo's reaction was the same as Satsuki's, elated that her plan had worked but her hopes were crushed as their sensei had broken out of her genjutsu and subdued Satsuki without any problems.

Grinning from ear to ear, Anko couldn't help but be impressed by the show of team work of the two girls. "That was some good team work girls! Having one of you keep the pressure on me while the other immobilizes me, that was some plan! But then again, it wasn't good enough." As she finished her statement, noticed that the last member of the squad had disappeared, she wasn't the only one as Yakumo and Satsuki had noticed as well.

"Huh, where did Blondie go? Did he go home or something?" Anko asked, seeing the confused expressions on her students, she figured that they had no idea either. But as she was about to get off Satsuki and go find him, she immediately jumped back to avoid a kick to the head that cut off a few hairs on her head.

Anko was shocked, her eyes wide, she didn't notice him until the last second. If she had been any slower there's no doubt that she'd be hurting or even unconscious.

After his kick missed, Naruto quickly grabbed Satsuki in a "princess carry", ignoring her shouts to let her go, and jumped back to where Yakumo was. Putting the now scarlet Satsuki, he turned back to Anko and rushed her.

"_Fast"_ was the unanimous thought of the group as Naruto stopped in front of Anko and proceeded to take her on in taijutsu.

_"Damn, he hits fucking hard. And on top of that he's fast, this is getting bad my arms are starting to go numb." _Anko grunted feeling the heavy blows of her student as she blocked and parried his attacks, though she was caught off guard as a kick broke through her guard and sent her stumbling back, spittle flying out of her mouth from the heavy blow. Though his assault didn't stop there, as he charged in and slipped in behind her.

Satsuki and Yakumo could only let their mouths hang open as they saw the scene unfolding in front of them. The dead last of their class was holding his own against a jōnin, and the apprentice of Orochimaru no less.

Anko was starting to get pissed, she had underestimated this brat and he was actually starting to push her back, her! The apprentice of one of the Sannin! Catching her balance, she turned around with an kick that was blocked by Naruto. Following up, she threw a heavy punch that send her student reeling back. Not letting him get his balance, she tackled him to the ground, straddling him and pinning his arms to the ground, a vicious smile on her face and a predatory glint in her eyes.

"That fucking hurt gaki, I thought you were the dead last? There's no way that you are with those skills, why hide it huh?" Anko questioned him, leering close to his face.

Behind the two, Satsuki's face was once again scarlet looking at the scene of her sensei straddling her teammate. Next to her Yakumo covered her eyes, her scarlet face matching Satsuki's. But they were broken out of their embarrassed states when Naruto shouted at then.

As Anko straddled him, Naruto reversed the grip she had on his wrists, and held onto them tightly. After doing this, he turned towards his teammates and shouted at them to grab the bells. "Satsuki! Yakumo! She's open, grab the bells NOW!"

Hearing their teammate actually shout at them, they two quickly rushed towards their now immobile sensei to grab the bells. After hearing this Anko tried to break free, but her student's grip on her wrists wouldn't budge. Knowing that it would be futile, Anko just sighed knowing that it was checkmate.

Minutes later a smiling Satsuki and Yakumo were standing next to a blank faced Naruto as Anko massaged her sore wrists, courtesy of the blonde in front of her. At first Anko sighed, but then she gave the three a grin as she knew that, unintentionally, they had managed to figure out the test.

"Congrats brats! You all pass!" As she congratulated them, she was asked the question at hand by Satsuki.

"But Anko-Sensei, we haven't decided on who would get the bells yet." Satsuki questioned, knowing that Naruto would probably get one since he did give them the chance to grab them. She would definitely fight for that second bell though. "_I need to have that second bell, Naruto is going to get one for sure. But it's not because I want to be on a team with him or anything, I just don't want to go through the Academy again. Yeah, that's right!_"

While Satsuki was having an internal debate as to the her intentions of wanting the bells, Yakumo was having a similar one. "_Naruto is most definitely getting a bell, I would really like the second one though. It would be nice being on a team with someone as reliable as him if he's as skilled as what I saw. But that's not saying Satsuki isn't reliable either!_"

However, their inner thoughts were broken by Anko who revealed the true reason behind the test. "That's true, but the real reason for this test was to test your ability to work as a team. At first, you all were going to fail. But with that little stunt at the end, I can see that you all have a future as a pretty powerful squad if we can work out the kinks! So yeah, Team 12 is official!"

As the words left her mouth, Satsuki and Yakumo revealed a dazzling smile while as Anko gave them all a grin. As they turned to the only male member of their team, to their complete shock and awe, he had a small smirk on his face though it vanished quickly. Satsuki and Yakumo quickly turned their heads away, cheeks flushed while Anko revealed a predatory grin.

"_Well, well, well. Looks like things are going to be interesting after all."_

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading guys! Leave a review and tell me what you think of my writing and story so far!<strong>

**So yeah, I always liked Orochimaru and I always imagined what he'd be like if he was still loyal to the Leaf, which I always wished he was. I'm also really new to making fighting scenes as in I've never made one up until now. So yeah... Haha!**

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><p>Jutsu List:<p>

**Kyotou no Jutsu** - **Big Head Technique**: B-Rank Ninjutsu

**Shunshin no Jutsu **- **Body Flicker Technique**: D-Rank Ninjutsu

**Koenken ****- Tiger Swallow Fist**

**Suiton: Teppōdama ****- Water Release: Gunshot**: C-Rank Ninjutsu

**Kanashibari no Jutsu ****- Temporary Paralysis Technique**: D-Rank Ninjutsu, Genjutsu


	5. Chapter 4

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys! I'm back again with another chapter! Again I know I say this all the time, but thank you all for reading my story and giving me feed back! Yes you, the reader! As for some of the questions that people have been asking me like about how strong he is, I don't know if telling you here will spoil it so I can't say, sorry! As for harem potential, I don't know honestly! If you guys have some girls who you'd like to see him with, they can be from other media but I'll need to figure out a way to incorporate them into the Narutoverse, leave it in a review and I'll take a look at them because I love interacting with you guys! Well, that's enough of me blabbering, let's get to this reading thing!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 4<p>

(Scene change - Hokage's tower)

A few hours after the final genin exams were concluded, Minato as well as the jōnin who proctored the exams were discussing the results of the tests. "Well, how did the genin perform on their tests everyone?" Getting mixed responses from the jōnin, Minato decided to call them in order of team number to give their reports. Most of them were able to pass, but a few failed due to conflicts within the team, which caused them to fail in working as a team.

"Team 7 passes Minato-sensei, but that's to be expected as they're all siblings and know each other pretty well." Kakashi gave his report, happy that his team passed. Getting a smile and nod from Minato, he continued with the reports.

"Team 8 passes as well Minato-sama, though Kiba Inuzuka is trying to assert himself as the 'Alpha' of the team. I'll have to work on getting him out of a pack mindset." Kurenai reported, confident that her team will become a strong one in the future. Minato also was pleased, he knew how the Inuzuka clan operated on a similar level to how a pack of wolves operated, so Kiba was only doing what his clan did.

"Team 10 also passes Minato-Sama, though the new Ino-Shika-Cho seem out of balance. Shikamaru and Choji get along great, but Ino isn't trying at all to get to know them or work with them at all. Shikamaru needed to appeal to her pride in order to get her to work with them, hopefully she breaks out of it." Asuma reported, concerned about the future of his team due to the blonde. Minato could only laugh wryly, knowing how Inoichi's daughter was absolutely obsessed with his son Menma. Hopefully she'd get into the kunoichi mindset soon though.

"Team 11 has passed as well Minato-sama, however they are not exactly team material. Sasuke Uchiha shows no aptitude for teamwork, opting to work alone. Adding onto that, he doesn't try to associate with his teammates at all, even when they were struggling to pass my test. Sakura Haruno is the exact opposite to Sasuke, all she is trying to do it to get him to agree to go on a date with her. While this wouldn't be normally a problem, she seems obsessed with him, to the point where Sai badmouthed him, she slugged him across the face. That brings me to Sai, he's... different. I don't know but I get the feeling that he isn't a genin, he's far to perceptive to be. After about half an hour, he got his teammates together and immediately told them about how teamwork was the key to the test. I won't do anything now, but I'll keep you updated about him." Genma reported with a sigh, knowing that he'd have his work cut out for him in the future. Minato gave a sharp nod in response, Orochimaru also commented on this team saying that they would either sink or swim, the team dynamic being somewhat similar to his own. But he did warn Minato to pay attention to Sai, as he had his suspicions about him as well.

"Team 12 also passed Hokage-sama! They were pretty good for a couple of rookies! Satsuki and Yakumo managed to bind me for a few seconds with their teamwork! But most the most surprising thing was Naruto!" At that statement, everyone's attention was focused on Anko, Minato's eyes widened by her statement and asked if she could continue, which she did.

"While it was just taijutsu, that kid is fast. And I mean FAST! I'd estimate that in terms of pure speed, he's at least low-jōnin. But that's not all, he hits pretty flippin' hard too." Lifting the sleeves of her trench coat, Anko showed the light colored bruises that spotted her arm. "These were all from him, I'm not joking when I say he actually pushed me to start trying, the first move he made was a kick to the head and I'm sure if I didn't dodge it, I'd be in the hospital with a concussion."

At the end of her report, everyone in the room quieted. The supposed dead last of the Academy managed to actually make the normally playful Anko try, that sent a shock through their systems as well as curiosity as to what else he could have been hiding. Minato knew that he had to get to the bottom of that mystery when he got back home.

"Thank you everyone! For the genin who didn't pass, please notify them that they will be put on reserve until they are placed on a team that works for them alright? That's all I have, thank all of you for your reports and meet me tomorrow for your squad's first mission. Anko, could you stay behind please? I need to talk to you." With that he dismissed the jōnin, with the exception of Anko.

"What's up Hokage-sama?" Anko asked, though she knew what he was probably going to ask about. It's not every day the son you everyone called a failure managed to singlehandedly take on a jōnin, even if they weren't going at one hundred percent.

"I'm sure you already know, but it's about Naruto. I wanted to know, since I know that Orochimaru asked you to monitor him for me, what do you think his mental state is? Do you think he's a treat to the village? Please be honest with me." Minato asked in a slightly hesitant manner, before he believed that his son wasn't a threat to the village but after hearing how he managed to go toe to toe with one of the top ninja in his village, he needed to be sure. Not just as a father but as the Hokage.

"As of right now, I'm not sure Minato-sama. From what I've gathered, it doesn't seem like he hates the village but I know he doesn't have any love for it either. Judging from his body language when he interacts with other people, he doesn't really pay attention to them since he doesn't tense up or relax around any one person. I'll keep an eye out for him though." Anko reported, knowing that it meant a great deal to him. Receiving a smile and a "thank you" in return, she was dismissed.

Leaning back in his chair, Minato could only hope that his son would be willing to talk to him about his abilities. He wasn't too hopeful, but right now it was his only choice in order to unravel one of the mysteries that shrouded Naruto.

He was about to finish up the last stack of documents before he felt a pulse of Kushina's chakra from the seal in her wedding ring. Before the pen touched the desk, he was gone in the signature flash of yellow of his **Hiraishin no Jutsu**.

(Scene change - Uzumaki-Namikaze compound)

Chaos could be the only thing that described the Uzumaki-Namikaze compound if someone were to see it. Kushina had her back pressed firmly against the door, her threatening yet scared aura on full blast causing her children to cower in fear of their now angry mother, though her oldest stood firm, the same blank expression on his face. As things were about to heat up, a flash of yellow gained the attention of everyone present in the room, a clear sign that their savior had arrived.

When Minato arrived, he noticed two things. One, his wife had an aura he hadn't felt in ages, the last time he felt this aura was when a rouge ninja called her by her moniker of the "Red Hot-Blooded Habanero", things weren't pretty afterwards. The second thing that he noticed was that his son had a small backpack and suitcase in hand. His eyes widened as he immediately understood the severity of the situation, Naruto was moving out. Though he didn't remain shocked for long as he was snapped out of his stupor by his wife.

"Minato! Naruto's moving out! I need you to help me convince him to stay here!" Kushina said frantically, tears starting to form at the corners of her eyes. Seeing his wife in such a state broke Minato's heart, steeling his resolve and facing his son Minato tried to persuade his son to stay at the compound.

"Naruto," Minato spoke softly, "Why are you moving out? Your home is here with us. If space is what you want we can arrange that, we can find somewhere on the compound for you to call your own place if you want. We still care about you regardless of what happened in the past, I don't know why we acted the way we did but we're going to make it up to you if you give us the chance Naruto. Just, please don't leave us. Don't leave your family. " Minato said with a sad tone, the tears in his eyes reflecting the sorrow in his heart.

Kushina picked up where Minato left off, taking a shaky step towards her oldest, tears freely flowing from her eyes now. "Naru-chan, you can't move out. You're only thirteen, where would you stay? How are you going to pay your rent with just a starting genin's earnings from missions? Who will make sure that you're eating right? Please Naru-chan, don't leave us, please don't." Kushina was openly weeping now, holding onto her husband for support as she continued to plead her oldest son to stay.

"I know that we've been terrible parents to you, and I know that I've been a horrible mother. We've never showed you the love that you deserved or needed but we're going to make it up to you! Just please give us another chance! Let us be your family again, please. Please let me be your Kaa-chan again."

Naruto's siblings stayed quiet throughout their parent's tearful pleas for their older brother to stay home with them. Narumi was opening crying like her mother, hiccupping a little as she cried. Mito was silently crying, furiously wiping away the tears in her eyes futilely as the more she wiped them away, the more would stream out. Menma was less expressive then his sisters, scoffing at his brother and turning his head to the side, but the slight quivering of his lips gave away the feeling deep in his heart.

As his family was crying around in front of him, Naruto continued to stay quiet. Looking at all of them with his face still blank.

The sorrowful atmosphere was amplified as the now sobbing Narumi clung onto her older brother and began pleading for him to stay as well. "Naru-nii! Please don't go! I'm sorry for being a horrible little sister and not playing with you when we were little! I'm sorry for always taking your ramen and not telling you! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! So please don't go, don't leave me behind. I want to be with you." Narumi cried into the chest of her brother as Mito also pleaded for him to stay.

"Naruto-nii, please don't go. I'm sorry for how I acted in the past, I'll do my best to be a better sister in the future, I promise! So please Niichan, please don't go. I don't want you to go." Mito begged, finally letting out a few hiccups of her own.

Menma just turned towards his older brother and locked stares with him, that blank look in his brother's eyes making him snap. "Just go you loser! Can't you see that you're nothing but a problem for us! If you were never here; Tou-san, Kaa-chan, Mito, and Narumi wouldn't be crying! So do us all a favor and just get out already! I don't need a useless brother like you or do I want one! You've never done anything that an older brother should do, so why bother wanting you to stay around! Just go! None of us need you!" After his small rant, Menma looked away, his lip quivering much more as a few tears leaked out of his eyes.

Finally, after hearing the members of his family speak from their hearts Naruto removed Narumi's arms from him and proceeded towards the door much to the horror and utter despair of his family. Near the entrance of the door, he proceeded to turn around and address his family as a whole.

"I've lived the majority of my life without any of you being a part of it, by now you all should know better then anyone else that I'm not a helpless child that needs to be coddled by his family. I learned to look out for myself by the time I turned 5 years old, that was 8 years ago. For 8 years I've lived without experiencing your love or attention, why would I need or even want it now? Whether you like it or not, I've already become my own person and I intend on living my own life outside of this house. You owe me that much at least." Naruto said, his eyes narrowing at the end into an ice cold glare that actually made his family flinch.

Finished with his statement, he turned around and began walking out the door, as his family started to break down behind him. Stopping as he opened it, he spoke one last time before he departed to his new apartment.

"A Family is supposed to love you unconditionally, and care for you without having to be asked to. From what I've experienced all these years, you shouldn't be considered my family. We should just be people who share the same blood, and that alone does not define a family. But... I can't cut my ties with you no matter how hard I try. Thank you for the things that you have done like providing me a bed to sleep on. I'll forgive you all for what you've done in the past because the past is the past and I live in the present, however don't expect a place in my heart. It'd be too painful for anyone to have place there anymore..."

Whispering the last part so only he heard it, Naruto turned around and gave them a small bow then walked out of the Uzumaki-Namikaze compound, towards the edge of the of the village where his new home laid.

As the door closed with a soft thud, Kushina immediately ran into her room and slammed the door, stifled sobbing could be heard through the door. Minato quickly chased after his wife, feeling the same emotions as she did flooding in his heart. Menma scoffed, and quickly went to his room, wiping the tears from his eyes as he muttered something about his brother under his breath. Mito and Narumi were hugging each other for physical and emotional support as they continued to cry and hiccup. The two eventually going to their rooms, as more stifled whimpers could be heard from the outside.

Reaching her room, Kushina slammed and locked it behind her. Throwing herself on the bed, she continued to sob uncontrollably, the cold eyes of her son and his words cutting deeply into her heart. She heard Minato knocking on the door, begging her to let in him, to let him comfort her, but she knew it wouldn't do a thing to ease her the pain in her heart at the moment. As the afternoon slowly turned into the evening, Minato had decided to give his wife her time to grieve as he returned to finish the small amount of paperwork he had left before returning.

Waking up from her tear induced nap, Kushina groggily looked around her room. Body felt numb for some reason, her heart feeling like a piece was missing from it. Tears threatening to spill from her eyes again, her gaze found its way towards the bookshelf. Slowly making her way over, she found what she was looking for her family's photo album. Shakily reaching for it, she took it off the shelf and opened it, tears flowing once more as the first picture in the album was of her whole family. Slowly tracing her fingers over Naruto's face, she turned continued through the book, stopping gazing at the photos of her oldest when he still had his smile, a smile that had been forgotten over the years.

Reaching the 5th birthday of her children she smiled once more as she gazed lovingly at the photo of her children all smiling and hugging each other. But soon her fond memories returned to their guilty and sad state. After that photo, there were almost no more photos of Naruto in the rest of the album.

Frantically flipping through the pages, she finally found one last photo of him, one that shattered what little hope she had in her son returning to her family. The final page of the album was another family photo of them in the living room without Naruto, but looking closer in the upper corner he was there, and he was casting them the same cold glare that he did earlier.

Clutching the album close to her chest, Kushina returned to her bed and cried softly as she let herself slip into the memories of the past. That's were Minato found his wife, appearing in a flash of yellow beside her. Sadness seeping into his eyes, he got changed and lied down beside her and wrapped her in a tight embrace, whispering that everything will be okay and that they'll do their best to bring their son home. Responding to Minato's comforting words, Kushina snuggled deeper into her husband's embrace, dreaming of a smiling Naruto running towards her before giving her a love filled hug.

"_I'm home Kaa-chan!"_

(Scene change - Naruto's apartment)

As the evening turned to night, Naruto had finished tidying up and furnishing his apartment. While it was rather far from the village's center, it was close to a normally unused training field, which would benefit him greatly in the future. After finishing with his apartment, Naruto took a much needed shower, washing away the fatigue of the day, both physical and emotional. Changing and then laying down on his bed, he thought about what had happened over the past few hours. He had finally moved out of that house, told his family about how he really felt about them, and was now an independent shinobi of Konoha. Looking out of his window towards the night sky where the stars laid, he didn't know what to make of the future, but for now both the stars and his future seemed a little brighter then before.

(Time skip - A few weeks later)

(Scene change - Hokage's tower)

The past few weeks have been interesting for Naruto to say the least. After moving out of his family's house, he had been seeing and feelings the disappointed glares of some of the villagers, most likely having heard that he had left his house and left his family in tears. But he never let the looks affect him, he'd been through worse then a few nasty looks.

He had bumped into his family over the past few weeks as well, Narumi latching onto him and begging him to come home every time she saw him. Mito tried to talk to him but always ended up starting a conversation that ended up with her awkwardly apologizing and leaving Menma just glared and scoffed at him then proceeded to berate him with his usual gang of friends about how weak and useless he was.

Kushina would see him shopping in the market district and barrage him with questions about how he was doing, if he was eating right, if he was staying out of trouble, and above all else, she asked if he wanted to come home, which he politely answered and declined each time. Though, he always saw Minato when he was getting a mission either with his team or individually and would be asked the exact same questions as he did from Kushina, which he politely answered and declined the offer of returning home.

Speaking of his team, things were proceeding how one would expect it to with Anko Mitarashi as a sensei. They were all being trained into the ground.

Yakumo due to her frail body, was having a hard time with the physical exercises. Anko made sure to check to see if she could was alright if she thought she was in danger, but she was beginning to get physically stronger to the joy of her parents and pride of Anko. Kurenai even said that she was beginning to lose her pale and weak complexion and gain a more lively and strong one which made her blush.

Satsuki fared much better, but she too was being trained into the ground by their overzealous sensei, but she could see that she was becoming stronger much to her enjoyment. Her parents even commented that she was much more skilled then she had ever been before, even her brothers noticed. Itachi smiled at her and told her that she was growing well. Sasuke however glared at her and she glared back, knowing that her brother was jealous of her growth.

Naruto didn't seem that tired when training sessions were over, on particularly hard days, the most they had seen him exhausted was a little winded breathing otherwise he was able to take on anything Anko threw at him.

As for what they were being trained on, at first it was mostly team exercises but due in part to the three actually working together cohesively they eventually were able to take on multiple types of training like tracking, scouting, support, investigation, espionage, and assault after a week of team building.

The past few weeks rotated between the six different topics which were beginning to make them a "Jack of all Trades" sort of team which Anko had been planning on making them, "Better to be safe then sorry" was her train of thought as she wanted her squad to be prepared for anything that could happen in the future.

Right now Team 12 was reporting on their 41st D-Ranked mission, which astounded every other jōnin sensei. Instead of the usual 2-5 missions a week, Anko made her team complete a minimum of at least 9 missions a week, her reason being "I don't want to be stuck doing D-Rank missions for more then a month." Which was now why she knew her genin were ready for their first C-Ranked mission.

"Congratulations for another mission well done Team 12! I assume that you want another mission correct?" Minato asked, handing the completed report to his assistant to be filed later. Satsuki's eye immediately started twitching as the thought of doing more chores made her lose her cool. Yakumo sighed, knowing that they'd be doing more manual labor in the coming hours. Naruto retained his blank look, but his eyes darkened a bit. Minato noticed the glint in Anko's eyes and immediately knew what kind of mission she was going to ask for.

"We sure are Hokage-sama! I think my cute little genin are ready for their first C-Rank mission! We've completed the minimum number of 30 D-Ranked missions, and I know that they'll be able to handle it!" As the words left Anko's mouth, Satsuki's eyes burned with the flames of determination within them. Yakumo's eyes widened in excitement as she straightened her back and put on a determined face. Naruto's face still remained blank, but there was a little excitement in his eyes. Seeing the look of determination and excitement on the faces of the genin, Minato could only sigh and relent, smiling he agreed.

"You're right Anko, your squad has gone above and beyond when completing your missions so I think you've earned this." Minato said with pride as he handed Anko a mission scroll. "It's a simple escort mission, but I think your team will be able to handle it. Alisa-san could you please let in Tazuna-san." Turning towards the door, Minato called out to the secretary to let in their client.

The door soon opened to reveal a grey-haired, bespectacled man. As soon as he reached them he turned and gave them his evaluation of them. "I thought I paid to hired a team to escort me; not two girls, a boy, and a scantily woman. I bet those three kids haven't even touched a weapon and that woman hasn't been in a real fight." Tazuna said as he took a gulp from a small bottle of sake.

Satsuki scowled as Anko and Yakumo frowned, definitely not liking how he was implying that women were weak. Naruto didn't react, but he did clench his hand slightly. But before things could escalate, Minato immediately narrowed his eyes and raised his voice at Tazuna.

"Tazuna-san, I would appreciate it if you don't insult the people that will be escorting you. The ninja before you are more then capable of protecting you, Anko is one of my top Kunoichi, being an ex-anbu captain.

At that information Tazuna, Satsuki, and Yakumo looked shocked. Tazuna because he had someone of such caliber protecting him and Yakumo and Satsuki because they didn't know that their sensei held such a prestigious position. Naruto's eyes widened slightly, but he knew she was much stronger then she was leading on.

At all the attention she was getting, Anko couldn't help but blush slightly. "Geez, if you keep staring at me like that I'm gonna blush." She said with a grin, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment. Eventually the tense atmosphere before returned to a tranquil one, Anko directing her genin.

"Alright my cute little genin, we're meeting tomorrow at the main gate and head towards Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves) then alright! From the mission details, we're going to be escorting and guarding Tazuna-san while the Wave complete a bridge. So pack enough supplies for at least a month to be safe alright?" After her instructions, her genin nodded and they were all dismissed.

As Naruto walked out of his office, Minato quickly called out to him. Stopping near the door, Naruto turned around slightly to face him. "Naruto, please be safe out there ok?" Expecting him to be ignored, Minato was surprised and overjoyed that his son actually responded to him. "I will be, thank you for your concern Minato-san." Naruto said before he bowed and exited the room, leaving Minato to smile slightly before he returned to his paperwork.

The next day, Team 12 had all assembled at the main gate. On gate duty that day, chūnin Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane couldn't help but smile and light lightly at the excited faces of the genin waiting at the gate. Yakumo had her eyes closed with a excited smile on her face as she hummed a little tune to herself. Satsuki was shaking a little in apprehension and excitement, her lips quivering from trying to stop herself from smiling too much. While Naruto looked at the forest through the gate with a blank expression, a tiny spark of excitement in his eyes. After a few minutes Tazuna arrived followed by Anko, who after seeing the looks of her genin, couldn't help but smile.

"Well looks like the three of you are excited to leave on this mission huh! Well let's get to it then!" As she gave her orders, she received a unanimous "Hai!" from her genin as they headed towards Nami no Kuni.

As Team 12 headed towards Nami no Kuni, Anko noticed that Tazuna looked more tense then an escort client should be, it was almost as if he was marked for death. Then she notice a large puddle ahead and narrowed her eyes.

"_A puddle that big, even if it rained recently it wouldn't be that big. Definitely has to be genjutsu. But maybe this'll be a good test to see how they handle a situation under pressure. If things start to turn, I'll step in._" After making the decision of letting her team handle things, Anko walked on the puddle as chains wrapped around her and ripped her to pieces, to the horror of her genin and Tazuna.

The chains retracted as two cloaked figures charged at the group, claw like gauntlets raised to strike. "One Down." One of the cloaked figures said as they approached the group.

Satsuki froze, she thought her sensei was one of the best in the village, if she got taken down what good would she be. Swallowing her fear, she dodged the cloaked figure with straight hair as they lunged at her with his gauntlet.

Yakumo seeing Satsuki in trouble immediately threw a volley of shuriken at the person attacking her, managing to get her attention long enough for Satsuki to kick them away, as she threw her own shuriken. While Satsuki and Yakumo were occupied with one of the cloaked figures, the other one with unruly hair charged him and Tazuna.

Tazuna was scared, he had seen an ex-anbu captain get ripped to pieces and now he was going to see a couple of kids get killed before he died. The girls were managing to hold off one of them but the blonde alone wasn't going to hold off the other one. As the other attack approached Tazuna couldn't only watch in shock and awe as the blonde headed kid actually stopped them.

Meizu couldn't believe was just happened, a kid stopped his attack with just a kunai. A kunai against his gauntlet. But he respond as a he felt pain erupt on the right side of his body.

As Meizu lunged at him, Naruto whipped out a kunai in a reverse grip, letting the gauntlet of his opponent glide across the blade of his kunai, Naruto deflecting the attack to the left side of his body, and judging from the shock of his opponent he didn't expect that to happen.

"Oh well," Naruto thought as he retaliated, spinning and connecting his elbow to the left side Meizu's body, a sickening snap echoing across the road as Meizu fell to the ground gasping for breath and clutching the side of his body. However, Naruto didn't his assault as he turned around and stuck the back of Meizu's head, his opponent's head impacting the ground with a dull thud as he remained motionless.

Gōzu couldn't believe his eyes when he saw his older brother hit the ground, holding his side. He didn't expect the kid to be skilled enough to handle his brother, let alone beat him. But his distraction cost him as a kick connected to his stomach, making him gasp for air. But he found himself unable to take a breath, as if there was no air for him to breathe, panicking and disoriented he slowly lost conciseness as his world turned black.

As Naruto finished dealing with his opponent, Yakumo had finished the signs to her jutsu as Satsuki managed to land a kick to Gōzu's midsection. Staring right at Gōzu, Yakumo whispered "**Botsuraku Gozō no Jutsu**". Seeing her opponent's look of shock as they tried to take a breath, Yakumo knew that it had worked. As Satsuki was about to strike again, she saw her opponent trying to take a breath and knew that it was Yakumo's jutsu at work. Sighing, the two were about to relax before the remembered the other one. Snapping their heads back towards their teammate, their jaws dropped as they saw him tying the other assailant up, the same blank expression on his face.

To say Anko was shocked would be an understatement, not only had her team manage to hold off enemy ninja, they managed to hold their own against 2 chūnin ranked opponents. While we was extremely impressed with Satsuki and Yakumo's incredible teamwork she was at a loss for words when she saw how efficiently and brutally Naruto took down his opponent.

"_That elbow had to have broken a rib or two and that blow to the back of the head alongside how hard the impact was, there's no doubt that he had some serious injuries.. While Satsuki and Yakumo had a little trouble dealing with Gozō that was expected, they're still genin. But Naruto dismantled Meizu like he was nothing. Just how strong is this kid?_" Breaking out of her thoughts, Anko dropped down to the shock of everyone but Naruto, which she took note of.

"That was amazing! Looks like my cute little genin really can handle themselves in the big, bad world!" Anko said grinning, explaining how she used **Kawarimi ** to substitute herself with a long in order to assess how they performed against live opponents, and that they exceed her expectations.

Hearing praises from their sensei, Yakumo and Satsuki revealed bashful faces and smiles, as they couldn't say anything in response to Anko's praises. Naruto's blank look remained, but a hint of happiness could be seen in his eyes. But the peaceful moment was broken when Anko turned to Tazuna, and addressed the situation.

"Look here Tazuna-san, I know that this has definitely escalated from a C-Rank escort mission. You mind telling me why we were attacked by the 'Demon Brothers' when we're just supposed to be escorting you." Anko said, a scary and angry glint in her eyes at the audacity of the man to put her genin in danger.

Tazuna almost immediately went down to his knees and begged them to help him. Telling them about the situation with Nami no Kuni about how a crime lord, Gato, has taken over and practically ruled the small village with an iron fist. That a C-Rank mission was the most that the could afford with the allotted funds from the few villagers who had extra to spare. As he finished he pleaded with them again to help him, that they would repay them in the future when the Wave was back on its feet.

Anko heard the sob story and couldn't help but feel pity towards the man and his village. According to code, she was to abandon the mission and report Tazuna to Minato and have his name blacklisted as requesting a false mission. Deciding that she couldn't make this decision alone, and that it was her genin's first time outside of the village she asked them.

"Well, you all heard his story. What do you think we should do? Remember, it's okay to not want to continue, it's a dangerous mission." Anko asked, her teasing voice unusually gentle. She didn't get a answer from Yakumo or Satsuki, the two girls looking at their feet. She didn't blame them, they had heard that Gato kidnapped women and girls and forced them into the "entertainment" business. But she received a response from the least vocal of the team, but the response wasn't one she or anyone else was expecting from him.

"Anko-sensei. We are going on this mission. We're going to escort Tazuna-san to Nami no Kuni and he's going to complete that bridge. Then, I'm going to find every one of Gato's thugs and tear their throats out. Finally, I'm going find Gato himself and rip his head off!" Naruto started out quietly but near the end he raised his voice as his eyes burned with so much fury that they were a little shaken by it. But as quickly as it came, it left, his blank face returning, though they could tell how he felt from the small scowl now on his face.

While she was shaken at him at first, Satsuki steadied her resolved and agreed with her teammate, though not about the killing part. Yakumo followed suit, knowing that it'll be dangerous and that she could become a liability given her condition, but steeled her resolve. Anko, seeing the now determined faces of her genin could only smile at them for wanting to help Tazuna, though she was a little scared of Naruto's proclamation, he wasn't actually going to kill anyone was he?

The team coming to an agreement before him to help him and his people, Tazuna could only bow his head lower and mutter "Thank you," over and over again, tears streaming down his face. After their vote, the group continued on their way towards Nami no Kuni; finally reaching a checkpoint at a friend of Tazuna who lent them a boat. After the boat ride, they proceeded on their way, only an about an hour and a half from Tazuna's homeland.

As they continued down the worn road, Anko began to feel as though someone was following them, but she couldn't point it out. On guard but figuring it was because she was in unknown territory, she ignored it. But soon the lull of the moment was broken when Naruto threw a kunai at a bush, a small white rabbit scurrying out of it.

"What are you doing you idiot? You almost gave me a heart attack!" Satsuki shouted at her teammate, patting herself over the chest. Her adrenaline returning for another encounter like earlier before.

"Naruto, please be more careful! You really scared me there, I thought it was another enemy!" Even the polite Yakumo scolded him, imitating the action of her female teammate by patting her chest in relief.

But the moment was immediately tense as Anko shout at them to get down. "GET DOWN!" Forcing Tazuna onto the ground as her genin quickly followed her order, a large blade soared overhead and embedded itself in the trunk of a tree behind them.

"Well, well, well. So you were able to dodge my Kubikiribōchō eh? Guess you aren't as bad as you look." A mocking voice said as they turned around to see a figure standing on the handle of the blade before jumping down and taking it out of its resting place and putting it on his shoulder.

Anko immediately narrowed her eyes, her body tense, ready to take action. "Zabuza Momochi, the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist'. What are you doing here?" Anko questioned, hoping that her wasn't here for Tazuna. But her fears were immediately answered as he let out a mocking laugh.

"Well, I didn't expect to find the 'Snake Mistress of Konoha' here. What do you think I'm here for? I'm here for the old man behind you, so why don't you do you and your little brats a favor and just hand him over. I won't kill you if you do." The man now known as Zabuza said.

"Sorry, but I can't do that. Mission is to protect him after all." Anko said, whipping out a kunai in preparation of the impending conflict. As Zabuza chuckled again.

"Mission? You expect me to believe a couple of brats like that are capable of taking on a mission like this already? I doubt they're even ready for D-Ranked mission let alone this!" He taunted, which worked as Satsuki growled, Yakumo glared, and Naruto actually narrowed his eyes at him. Anko didn't take too kindly to someone other then herself taunting her genin.

"But fine, we'll do this the hard and fun way." Zabuza said, raising his arms in seal before calling out a jutsu that made Anko drop a bead of sweat down the side of her face. "**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu**," as a thick mist began to roll in to the shock of the genin. As the mist rolled in, the three began to feel a thickness in the air, as if it was getting much harder to breathe.

Satsuki was trembling, the kunai she had taken out was shaking in her hand. Her whole being screamed at her to run away, to get somewhere safe, but she couldn't move. All she could do was stand there shaking like a leaf in the wind. "_Wha-what is this? The air is so thick, I can't even breathe. It's like I'm in a pool of water right now. I'm scared. I'm really scared. Am I going to die?_" Satsuki thought as she frantically looked within her field of view, unable to even turn her head due to the overwhelming killing intent.

Yakumo was on her knees, her already frail body unable to take the killing intent directed at her. The kunai that she originally held in one hand was now held in both, shaking just like her body. She wasn't prepared for this, she expected another quick fight but not this. She didn't want to be here, she wanted to take everyone and run but she couldn't even move a finger in this situation. "_We need to get out of here! We're not going to make it if we fight this man, I don't even think Anko-sensei can beat him in this mist! I want to get everyone and run but I can't. I'm scared. I'm really scared. I'm going to die aren't I?_" Yakumo thought as she stared into the mist before her, unable to vocalize any of her thoughts or actions from the killing intent Zabuza was emitting.

While his two teammates were having a hard time due to the killing intent directed at them, Naruto was faring much better, having been exposed to far worse from Ryuuhei. Though that didn't shake all his apprehension off as the slight shaking of his hand was an indicator that he was nervous. "_So this is what Ryuu-niichan meant when he said that it was a technique used by practically every ninja out there. I need to be careful, one wrong move and I'm dead._" Naruto was broken out of his thoughts when Anko stood firm before them.

"Satsuki, Yakumo, Naruto! Don't panic, I don't let my comrades die, espeically when they're people I care about!" Anko shouted, trying to lift the effects of the killing intent from her genin, and it worked as they all visibly stopped shaking violently. Satsuki tightening her grip on her kunai. Yakumo shakily standing up before getting into a stance with her kunai. Naruto relaxed and slip into a stance, his eyes now hard and sharp. After her speech, Zabuza laughed again before appearing in the middle of Naruto, Satsuki, Yakumo, and Tazuna. To their shock and horror.

"Nice speech, too bad you're all dead." He said as he brought Kubikiribōchō around to slash through the four, but as he did Anko appeared next to him and stabbed him through in the midsection to his shock.

"Don't you EVER try to lay your dirty hands on my genin." Anko glared at him with unbridled fury in her eyes. But to their surprise, he turned into a puddle of water.

"ANKO-SENSEI! BEHIND YOU!" Yakumo screamed, seeing another Zabuza appear behind her. To their horror, Anko was cut down by Zabuza. But to his shock, the Anko he cut turned to mud as it hit the ground. As he felt cold steel against his neck.

"You're finished." Anko said in a cold voice, her eyes narrowed in anger. But to her surprise and the surprise of everyone else, she started to chuckle lightly.

"You prepared a **Doro Bunshin** when I made the mist didn't you? That's pretty clever I'll give you that. But I'm finished? You don't understand who you're facing do you?" After saying that, Zabuza dispersed into another puddle of water and reappeared behind her, Kubikiribōchō in swing to cleave her in half.

Ducking, Anko managed to evade being cut in half but using his momentum Zabuza spun around and kicked her in the side sending her to the large lake that laid next to them.

"You just sealed the death of you, the old man, and your little wannabe ninjas." Zabuza said, rushing to the area where Anko had landed .

"ANKO-SENSEI!" Satsuki shouted, her eyes wide in shock at what just happened. Her sensei had just been kicked into a lake, from what she had seen he used suiton which meant he had the advantage in the water.

"SENSEI!" Yakumo screamed, seeing her sensei get kicked into a lake. If she was in the lake then that meant that Zabuza had the advantage if he knew more suiton jutsu, which from her sensei's battle, he probably did.

Naruto's eyes widened before they narrowed again. "_This isn't good at all. Sensei has zero chance now that he's got her in that lake._" Expression similar thoughts as his teammates at the situation now at hand.

"Pwah, what hell? Why the fuck is this water so damn heavy?" Anko said, breaking the surface of the lake only to see Zabuza's shadow next to her, turning around her eyes widened as she saw him finish a series of hand seals.

"You were stupid to let me get you into the lake, but you made a dumber mistake by trying to get out of it. **Suiton:** **Suirō no Jutsu**!" Zabuza shouted as he encased Anko in a sphere of water. "Can't move can you? That waters denser due to my charka flowing through it, you're not getting out of there."

"_Shit! He's a lot stronger then I thought, I should've known better then to have fucking underestimated him!_" Anko angrily thought, her overconfidence was going to cost her own life, the life of Tazuna, but worst of all it was going to cost her the lives of her genin.

Turning towards stunned genin, Zabuza could only stare mockingly at them before he created another water clone using the **Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu** from earlier. "Look at you all shaking and scared now that you lost your sensei. Where's that bravado from earlier, especially you Blondie, I didn't notice you shaking before, absolutely pathetic. A real ninja is one who can survive even in the face of death, and let me tell you a little secret, I. Have." Putting emphasis on the last two words, Zabuza proceeded to tell him of his exam to become a shinobi.

"In the Bloody Mist, the genin selection exam involved you killing the classmates and friends that you grew up, ate, and played with. It was a test that truly showed who was the strongest. Now imagine a kid who wasn't even part of that exam showing up and killing over one hundred of those weaklings. Those were good times." At his story, Satsuki and Yakumo turned a sickly green at the thought of that massacre. As he finished, the clone he created vanished and reappeared in front of Naruto to everyone's shock and sent him flying with a kick to the head, knocking his headband off in the process.

"Kid like you are way in over your heads, you know what you are." His clone started as he walked towards the group. "Your just a bunch of immature, weak, scared, little brats."

"RUN! YOU GUYS CAN'T WIN, JUST TAKE TAZUNA-SAN RUN AND SAVE YOURSELVES! HE CAN'T MOVE WHILE HE'S HOLDING ME HERE AND HIS CLONES CAN'T MOVE TOO FAR FROM THE ORIGINAL!" Anko screamed hysterically as she was about to witness the deaths of her genin right before her eyes.

As the clone approached slowly, Satsuki, Yakumo, and Tazuna had their lives flash before their eyes as they closed them. Tazuna remembered his family and the wave, their smiles and hopes all placed on him to complete the bridge.

Satsuki remembered her family, her mother and father's smiles, her other brother's forehead pokes, and her twin's smirk. Then she saw all the times she had with her team, the missions, the training, but she also saw a head of blonde hair and a handsome smile directed towards her instead of his usual blank face.

Yakumo remembered her mother and father smiling at her, the sealing of the Ido by Kushina and Minato. The times she spent with Kurenai and training with her. Then she saw her team, with all the missions and training sessions that they had together, but then she saw a familiar head of blonde hair but instead of a blank face, this blonde gave her a charming smile.

As they began to accept the fact that they were going to die, a thud and splash could be heard which made them snap their eyes open. Standing in front of them wasn't a blank faced Naruto, but a Naruto with his eyes narrowed in anger with a scowl on his face.

"That hurt, but I guess I don't have to hold back huh?" He said as his scowl slowly turned into a smirk. Biting the thumb on his left hand and quickly swiping the blood into the palm of his hand, a cloud of smoke cover him from the views of everyone present. As it cleared everyone present had their jaws drop at what they saw. Naruto was standing in the same position with his eyes closed, but with a huge sword at least 6ft long and a 1ft wide, resting on his shoulder. Turning his head slightly so that he faced Zabuza, he slowly opened his eyes. His navy blue eyes were now electric blue, his round pupil was now reptilian in shape. His blank face slowly turned into a predatory smile as he uttered a few words that made Zabuza sweat slightly.

"I'm a little different from most immature brats."

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>And that's a wrap! Thanks for reading guys, be sure to leave me a review about my story and writing so far! I always appreciate it! Could this be a sign of a future with our blonde hero for Satsuki and Yakumo? What does Naruto mean by that Statement? Find out next on "A Son Forgotten"! XD And Oh Yeah! That's right guys, it's that Buster Sword! So cliche and blah I know but I love it so much, it's so simple and cool! But Naruto'll have more weapons don't worry! So uh yeah, tell me how my fight scenes are sounding alright! Tell next time, stay awesome!<strong>

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><p>Jutsu list:<p>

**Hiraishin no Jutsu - Flying Thunder God Technique**: S-Rank, Time-Space Ninjutsu, Ninjutsu

**Botsuraku Gozō no Jutsu - Diminishing Air Technique**: C-Rank, Genjutsu, Ninjutsu

**Kawarimi - Substitution**: E-Rank, Ninjutsu

**Doro Bunshin - Mud Clone**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu

**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu - Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique**: D-Rank, Ninjutsu

**Suiton: Suirō no Jutsu - Water Release: Water Prison Jutsu**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu

**Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu - Water Clone Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu


	6. Chapter 5

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys, I'm back again with another chapter! This one is a little short, mostly because I've been busy with school work and such, engineering is a pain. But hey, better then nothing right! It's the next part of the wave arc and I really hope you guys enjoy it! The fighting scene isn't all that great though, I'm sorry but I'm still learning! And people have been pm'ing me this question a lot and I'm kinda tired of hearing it so I'll answer it here. The only thing that Naruto is missing is experience and a huge chakra pool like his siblings since he doesn't have a part of the Kyūbi sealed in him. Hopefully now people will stop pm'ing me that question, haha! As for pairing, still don't have one. Again, leave your suggestions in your review and I'll take a look at em! Well, let's get on with this reading thing eh!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 5<p>

Silence dominated the battlefield as Naruto stood defiantly against a stunned Zabuza. Not only had he destroyed his **Mizu Bunshin **without trouble, but after that cloud of smoke dispersed, he was different then before. Before he was a blank faced, navy eyed brat. But now he had electric blue eyes, a giant sword that he swore he knew from somewhere, and a predatory smile on his face; though he was still a brat. Though, that wasn't what caused Zabuza to break a sweat, what did was the aura of sheer confidence and dominance that he now emitted.

Anko was in complete shock at the changes in her student, the blank faced boy she had gotten fond of had now a completely different personality. His presence reminded her of someone but she couldn't think of who it was, but she did know one thing. For some reason, she had strange feeling of confidence in him and knew that he'd be able to get them out of this mess. Though, it could be because he was holding a sword that was bigger then he was.

Tazuna was in awe of the boy that stood in front of him, from what he had seen before with the 'Demon Brothers' he was dependable, being able to deal with one of them easily. But now, he had the sneaking suspicion that he would even be able to take on Zabuza and actually win as crazy as it seemed. He could only hope that his suspicions were true as if they weren't, they'd be as good as dead.

Satsuki had her jaw gaping at the scene. The dead last of the Academy, her stupid teammate, and the same guy who she had been working with for the past month had completely changed the personality that she had grown used to seeing. Standing before her wasn't a blank faced blonde, but a blonde who gave off a powerful aura. She didn't know why, but she actually believed that he could beat Zabuza.

Yakumo couldn't believe her eyes, what had happened to her blonde teammate? He was always so calm and collected, but now it seemed like he was ready to run wild. She had never felt such confidence from anyone in her life, and that made her feel safe and secure. She knew that deep in her heart, Naruto would beat Zabuza and save them all from the situation that they found themselves in.

However, the standoff was broken when Zabuza knew that this was no time to be thinking about 'What if's' of the brat, quickly making more clones, he sent them to get rid of the him before he could do anything else.

Seeing Zabuza create more clones and send them to attack, Naruto quickly lost his smile and his eyes narrowed as he a rushed in to intercept them before they reached shore. To everyone's complete shock, he started running across the water similar to Zabuza's clones, reaching the first one before they reached land.

The clone responded with a downward slash, which Naruto avoided, taking a step to the right and spinning, using the momentum gained to slash through the cloned Kubikiribōchō and its wielder with ease. Not easing up, he rushed through the remaining clones, hacking and dodging his way through them before he finally finished dealing with them, turning his attention towards the original and Anko.

Zabuza wasn't just surprised, he was outright stunned. A boy at least half his age was using a sword that huge with such grace and skill, it just wasn't possible. But at the same time, a feeling that he thought had died long ago began to surface after almost a decade, for the first time in a number of years, Zabuza actually felt excited at the prospect of fighting another person. He was broken out of his thoughts when Naruto started to run towards him, his sword trailing behind in his right hand.

"Tsk, looks like I don't have a choice." Zabuza whispered, removing his hand from his **Suirō no Jutsu**, he grabbed Kubikiribōchō and charged Naruto. Leaving Anko, to drop back into the water and take large gulps of precious air.

Seeing Zabuza release his sensei, Naruto mentally breathed a sigh of relief, that was one problem dealt with and the other was headed right towards him. Tightening his grip on his Basutāsōdo, he swung and met Zabuza's Kubikiribōchō head on, a deafening clang and shower of sparks flying as the two blades met each other.

Grunting as he was being easily overpowered by the larger man, Naruto shifted his sword slightly and managed to throw Kubikiribōchō slightly off balance, side stepping Naruto spun around and slashed horizontally in an attempt to at least break Zabuza's guard a little bit.

Feeling his balance shift slightly due to the brat angling his sword slightly, saw him spin around like he did earlier probably trying to break through Kubikiribōchō like with the clone. Smirking under his bandages, he had to admit that if he was using a regular sword, that would've worked, but unfortunately for the brat, he had Kubikiribōchō. Tightening his grip on his sword and bracing himself for the attack, Zabuza took the full brunt of Naruto's swing, his arms buckled a little bit from the power of it, but it didn't even come close to the power of Kisame's monstrous swings.

Naruto's eyes went wide, he had at least expected Zabuza to take a step back or something, but he didn't expect him to shrug off his swing like it was nothing. His momentary distraction was exploited as Zabuza kicked him in the gut, making him stumble back a few feet before his rolled to the side to avoid the overhead swing from Zabuza.

Righting himself, Naruto was about to rush towards Zabuza again when he noticed his sensei running towards them, her hands a blur as she prepared a jutsu. Satsuki and Yakumo were also preparing their own jutsu as they ran towards the shoreline of the lake and took aim. Zabuza noticed as well, if the tensing of his body and darkening of his eyes were any indication.

"_Tsk. Figured he wouldn't be fighting fair. I almost forgot that we're not just swordsmen. We're also shinobi and we don't fight fair._" Just when he was starting to get into this duel, he remembered that they weren't just swordsmen but were ninja as well. One on one and honor didn't exist in this world, figured the brat was just stalling for time for his team to get the jump on him. But he didn't expect what happened next and neither did anyone else.

"Anko-sensei, Satsuki, Yakumo, STOP!" Naruto shouted at his team, making them flinch and stop in the midst of their seals.

"What do you mean stop!? You're seriously not expecting me to just wait and do nothing while he butchers you! We've got the advantage now, and I'm not going to let it go to waste!" Anko shouted back. The hell was he thinking, they had the advantage now that it was two on one, especially now that she wasn't going to underestimate him anymore.

"Yeah you idiot! You think you can take on someone like him on your own!? Are you insane!?" Satsuki screamed at him, her eyes burning in anger. "We're not going to let you get killed just because you think you're going to win!"

"Naruto, we're a team! We fight together, that why we're not going to just sit back and watch!" Yakumo yelled at him, her usually calm face now slightly angry and determined.

But the words from their teammate that followed made everyone present gawk.

"That's true and if we were fighting other ninja I'd agree with you. But that's not the situation anymore. This turned into a duel between swordsmen the moment his sword met mine. Have you guys noticed that he hasn't used a single **Mizu Bunshin** or suiton jutsu even though I'm on the water, his playing field? He could've crushed me if he decided to use a wide scale jutsu but he didn't. He probably did it unconsciously, but he has agreed this duel as well. Isn't that right Zabuza-san?" Naruto said, never taking his eyes of Zabuza as he tightened the grip on his sword.

Again, this brat had him stunned. Was he suicidal, or just plain insane? A duel with him? One of the 'Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist'? Though, he had to admit, he gained a very tiny grain of respect for the brat. Not many still upheld the honor that came with a duel anymore, himself included. But he had to admit, he actually kind of wanted to see what the brat was made of.

If he knew about the honor and code of a duel, what were his skills like? From what he's seen, he wasn't too green. Finally, he did something that unnerved everyone there, he laughed. It wasn't the condescending or dark laugh from earlier, but an actual humor filled one.

"Are you insane or just plain suicidal brat? You're openly challenging one of the strongest 'Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist'! Even with your sensei, you two wouldn't even land a scratch me!" Zabuza barked out, his eyes never leaving the blonde in front of him, as he also tightened his grip on Kubikiribōchō. What came next out of Naruto's mouth was something that he just couldn't forgive.

"Don't you mean _former_ 'Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist' _old man_? From what I've seen, you've lost your skill as a swordsman. Guess laying around doing nothing for a few years will do that to you." Naruto snidely said, sneering at Zabuza as tick marks began to pop up on his head.

"Oh, you're fucking dead brat... and for the record I'M NOT THAT OLD! I'M ONLY 26!" Zabuza yelled, rage boiling in his eyes as he charged at Naruto.

Naruto winced as his plan to anger Zabuza worked probably too well, bringing his Basutāsōdo up to block the blow from Zabuza as a shower of sparked rained down on him, his arms buckled under the sheer power of Zabuza's swing as he made a mental note to himself.

"_Note to self: Try not to anger a former master swordsman during a duel by commenting on their age._"

They continued clashing against each other, sparks flying each time their blades met. As he saw a diagonal slash from Zabuza, Naruto misjudged the timing of his dodge, Zabuza landing a clean cut on his shoulder. The favor was returned when they collided once more, Naruto angling and pushing his Basutāsōdo off against Kubikiribōchō, managing to land a cut on Zabuza's cheek.

Eventually, Naruto started to slow down, the heavy blows from Zabuza making his arms go more and more numb with each swing. Swinging his sword in overhead in a wide arc, Zabuza's Kubikiribōchō met Naruto's Basutāsōdo with a loud clang and explosion of sparks.

Angling his sword again then pushing against Kubikiribōchō once more, Naruto threw Zabuza off balance slightly as he swung towards him but met air as Zabuza ducked under his swing. Spinning around Zabuza swung horizontally to bisect Naruto, but hit his sword instead, sending the blonde flying a short distance from the power of his swing.

Smirking a bit, Zabuza changed his stance as Naruto staggered to his feet, setting up an unstable guard with his Basutāsōdo. Setting his feet diagonally shoulder length apart, his right foot outstretched and Kubikiribōchō held in a reverse grip perpendicular to his body behind him, Zabuza performed a move he hasn't used since his time as a part of Kiri's military force.

"**Kubikiribōchō: Reisuiwari!**"

Naruto barely saw him move as Zabuza appeared behind him, sending him flying from the monstrous power of his attack. Hitting the water and skipping a few feet, he managed to regain his balance and right himself in the air, his eyes widened as he saw the aftereffect of Zabuza's attack; a scar in the water ran from where Zabuza stood to where he was before his attack, at least 7-9ft long, a foot wide and 2ft deep.

"Not bad brat, you're actually still alive. I must be getting rusty if you lived through that, nobodies seen that and lived to admire it like you're doing right now." Zabuza praised slightly, though he was discontent with the lack of power in his attack, he was rusty and he didn't like that.

Naruto stood up shakily, his stamina beginning to run out. He was covered in cuts, the largest one on being on the back of his right shoulder from misreading the timing of one of his dodges. Compared to him, Zabuza had only superficial cuts, his most major one being on a small cut on his check from getting knocked off balance earlier.

Shooting a quick glance to the side, Naruto could tell his teammate's and sensei's self control were quickly slipping from the glares they were directing at Zabuza. He needed to finish this quickly before they interrupted them. Slipping into a stance similar to Zabuza's before. He got a raised eyebrow from the taller man.

"Looks like you're intending on finishing this huh? Fine brat, I'll humor you." He said, getting into the same stance as before.

"We end things in this final attack alright Zabuza-san? I win, you let us go. You win, you can kill me but let please let my team and Tazuna-san go." Naruto said, staring straight at Zabuza, his eyes hard and narrowed.

"You really think you should be bargaining in your position? I'll think about it, but you have zero chance of winning brat." Zabuza replied, tightening his grip on his sword as he narrowed and focused his eyes on Naruto.

Silence reigned over the lake, as no one dared to take a breath during the tense moment. Finally, as if they were waiting for it, a leaf dropped onto the lake, and the two charged each other.

"**Kubikiribōchō: Reisuiwari!**"

"**Basutāsōdo****: Jishin Giri!**"

Faster then their eyes could follow, excluding Anko, the final strikes of Naruto and Zabuza ended. The water between them ripped 3ft across, 5ft deep, and 12ft long; slowly began to fill back in, causing turbulent waves to form.

Naruto's eyes widened as he coughed up blood as a cut appeared from his left shoulder going diagonally downwards, ending near his hip. Dropping his Basutāsōdo, it disappeared in a large wisp of black smoke before hitting the water. His world started to go black as he saw Anko sprinting towards him, he managed to mutter one word before losing consciousness. "How...?"

Zabuza stood firm, before he coughed up some blood, staining the bandages over his mouth. If he turned around, they all would see that he had a horizontal gash across his body. The deepest cut was on his right bicep which was cut halfway to the bone, which ran across his chest to the other bicep. Smirking to himself, he heaved Kubikiribōchō onto his shoulder with his left hand before he started to sway. Though, before he could fall, a masked figure in a kimono appeared next to him and leaned him onto their shoulder. Without waiting for a response from any of them, he vanished in a swirl of mist.

After Anko brought Naruto back to the shore of the lake, she was met with a teary eyed Yakumo and Satsuki who asked if he was alright. To everyone's relief, the cut he received was wasn't life threatening, the deepest part being near his shoulder was halfway towards cutting the bone, which Anko took care of quickly.

(Scene change - Unknown place)

The masked figure that had Zabuza held close gently put him down as they started tending to his injuries. After a few seconds, Zabuza snapped his eyes open, locking his gaze on the person treating him.

"Ugh... Haku, that you?" He asked, slightly disorientated from the blood loss.

"Yes Zabuza-sama, it's me. I'm sorry that I let you get this injured. I should've stopped that shinobi when I had the chance." Haku solemnly said in a feminine tone, removing the mask on their face to reveal a beautiful yet sad face. She expected to get yelled at for failing to protect him, but she got yelled at for a completely different reason.

"Are you an idiot? That was a one on one duel between that brat and me. If you had interfered, I would've cut you down for tarnishing my name as a swordsman. I don't have much left, but that brat reminded me that I still do have my reputation as a swordsman." He said in a stern tone, as he started checking over his injuries, being actually surprised at the damage that he sustained.

"Damn, that brat wasn't half bad. If I had been a little slower I would've lost my arm. Guess he wasn't bluffing when he said he was different from the other brats." He was broken out of his assessment by Haku who reminded him to be careful.

"Zabuza-sama, please don't strain yourself. Next time, I'll take care of that boy. You focus on recovering your strength, Gato said that in the case that we failed to eliminate the target, we'll gather and eliminate them within the coming week or two." Haku said, but once again was surprised by her master's words.

"You don't get it do you Haku, that brat is mine and mine alone. You take care of his sensei and those other brats, but me and him have a duel to finish next time. We'll give them until the day that sleazeball decides to attack to recover." After hearing her master's orders, Haku nodded and returned to tending his wounds as Zabuza thought back to duel.

"_That kid... He's good, he's really good. The only reason it turned out like this was because he's inexperienced and I'm rusty. Heh, he's gonna be a monster in the future..._"

(Time skip - 2 hours later)

(Scene Change - Nami no Kuni)

After their brush with death, the group finally made it to Tazuna's house. As they approached the house, a relatively young woman with dark hair stepped out of the house and as soon as she turned her head and saw the group, namely Tazuna, she started to tear up before running and giving the man a hug.

"Father! You're alright! I was so worried, you said it would only take 2 days to come back! Why did it take you 3! Are you hurt anywhere?" The woman asked, frantically checking if Tazuna was injured anywhere. She received a chuckle in return as he hugged his daughter back.

"I'm fine, I'm fine Tsunami! I was attacked, but these brave ninja protected me." Tazuna reassured his daughter, as she turned and introduced herself and thanked them for protecting her father.

"I'm Tsunami, thank you so much for protecting my father. Without him, the last hope for the Wave would be lost." Tsunami said solemnly, knowing that his daughter would venture into more depressing memories, Tazuna opted to break the now saddened mood.

"Now Tsunami, just don't stand there! We have guests to our home, let's try and make them feel welcomed ok!" Tazuna said with a bright smile on his face that was returned by his daughter.

"You're right father, everyone please do come right in. It's small, but it is home. We should have enough room for all of you to stay, so please don't be shy." Tsunami said with a smile as she led the group into the house.

As they entered, they spotted a child with spiky black hair and eyes. Seeing them enter, the child gave them a slightly angry look before Tsunami called out to him.

_"_Inari, say hello to these people. They are ninja who protected Grandpa." Tsunami said with a gently and motherly tone, as she smiled at her son. Though Inari ignored them as he headed up to his room.

Seeing the reaction of the kid raised alarms in Anko's head, a kid his age shouldn't be looking like that, something big must've happened with him. Quickly glancing around, she also noted that there weren't many pictures of Tsunami with someone who looked like her husband. Mentally, she made a note to herself about that.

"_Well, looks like the situation is more drastic then we thought. Kid must've had his dad either leave them or got killed by Gato's men._" She assessed, as Tsunami apologized for her son's behavior, getting an understanding nod from the Konoha ninja, seeing as the situation in Nami no Kuni must've been harsh.

(Time skip - 1 hour later)

After they had all settled into Tsunami, Tazuna, and Inari's home; Team 12 had one thing on their minds, that being Naruto. After Anko had finished treating him and Tsunami directed her as to where he was going to be sleeping, she had called Yakumo and Satsuki together for a team meeting.

"Anko-sensei... Just, just what is Naruto?" Yakumo asked timidly, after being shouted at by her teammate to not interfere with the battle he had with Zabuza and seeing him somehow hold his own against him, hundreds of questions swam through her mind. Who really was their blonde teammate? The blank faced but funny person they always saw? The angry and scary person who promised to kill Gato? The strong and confident person who fought against Zabuza? Just who was Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze?

"Yeah sensei, how was he able to fight one on one with Zabuza? He's never shown that kind of power, not ever." Satsuki also questioned, part of her felt afraid that there was someone strong like him so close to her. Unlike Anko who Satsuki knew was loyal to and loved the village, she knew that Naruto didn't really have any friends at all in the entire village. He didn't have a reason to save or even care about her other then the obligation of being on the same team. But another part of her was relieved that her teammate was so strong, maybe he could help her become stronger too.

Seeing the looks on her genin's faces, Anko made a muddled face as she admitted that she didn't know much about the blonde either. "You guess is as good as mine you two. From what I've noticed in the past month, he doesn't really have any friends in the village. I guess we can count since we kind of hang out and stuff, but other then that, nada. He also doesn't seem to really try during training sessions, we've all seen that. But today, I don't know why, but he was really fired up to fight against Zabuza. It's even more surprising that he managed to actually fight him one on one for a little bit." Anko said, explaining what she's noticed so far. But she got confused looks from the students near the last part of her explanation.

"'For a little bit', Anko-sensei? But didn't it end in a draw?" Yakumo asked, confused as she saw both of them look like they were about to drop, Naruto actually doing that. Satsuki shared her teammate's inquiry, she thought it ended in a draw too.

"Trust me you two, if that battle had dragged on, Naruto would've lost. And I do mean he managed to match him for a little bit. At the start of the battle, he was being underestimated by Zabuza, which is understandable coming from his position. But as soon as they started clashing, Zabuza started to get sharper in his movements, completely different from how he fought against me or Naruto earlier. That means that during the fight, he was removing the rust that had probably built up over the past few years living as a nuke-nin. Naruto on the other hand started to react a little bit faster each time, but Zabuza was recovering more of his old skills as a swordsman much quicker then Naruto was polishing his. That's why I said he managed to match him for a little bit." Anko explained to her students, seeing the looks of fear on their faces she couldn't help but put her hands on the top of their heads and ruffle their hair.

"Don't worry you two, next time I'll take him on. I underestimated him like an rookie the first time because I thought his skills diminished over the years, which they didn't. Next time, I'll go all out." Anko reassured her students, which worked seeing the relieved looks and smiles on their faces.

"Now enough questions about him, he saved us didn't he! Why don't we go check on our favorite Blondie!" She said, standing up and heading to his room with Satsuki and Yakumo in tow. As they opened the door, they were met with a shirtless Naruto in the process of taking off his pants. They all froze, staring at each other.

Satsuki's mind overloaded at the scene, she started stuttering and pointed at him as her mind tried to process the situation at hand. Her eyes turned into swirls as her faced turned a vibrant red that put a tomato to shame. Her mind furiously imprinting the image of her teammate to her memory against her will.

Yakumo didn't fare any better, her eyes were as wide as saucers as she stared at the scene. She tried to speak, opening and closing her mouth in an attempt to say anything. Her face a similar vibrant red to Satsuki's. Her mind shut down at the image of her half naked teammate, which unknown to her, was being burned to her memory.

Anko just stared, being the oldest of the bunch and having seen the male anatomy she didn't really react at all, though there was a very slight tinge of pink on her cheeks.

The slightly erotic moment was immediately broken when Naruto removed his hands from his pants and walked to the door his face blank. As he reached it, his face was still blank but his cheeks gained a light dusting of pink as he said one word before slamming the door in their faces.

"Perverts."

Dinner that night was a silent and awkward affair.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Ah, finally done reading? Why don't you leave me a review and tell me how you think of my story and writing so far! It's always appreciated and I love hearing from you guys! Haha, thanks for reading! <strong>

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><p><strong>Suirō no Jutsu - Water Prison Jutsu<strong>

**Mizu Bunshin - Water Clone**

**Kubikiribōchō: Reisuiwari - Decapitating Carving Knife: Cold Water Splitting**: A-Rank, Kenjutsu; A once nameless kenjutsu technique that Zabuza created and uses. It is a powerful diagonal slash and that releases a subsequent shock wave that begins with the user holding their sword diagonally to their body, then swinging in a wide arc. It gained its name during a battle with where it was raining heavily, obscuring their enemies' movements. Zabuza was said to have cut right through the cold water of the rain splitting it from the ground to the sky, exposing and slashing many of the enemy ninja in two.

**Basutāsōdo****: Jishin Giri - Buster Sword: Earthquake Slash**: B-Rank, Kenjutsu; A kenjutsu technique passed down the Shirokin family and to Naruto from Ryuuhei. It is a wide, horizontal slash that releases a powerful shock wave from the force of the swing if powerful enough. It and the variations of it were said to have been able cut through mountains and cause earthquakes if used properly.


	7. Chapter 6

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Whoa. It's been quite some time huh everyone? Haha, sorry about the long wait. Been busy with exams and studying and all that horrible, horrible college stuff. Another big thing is that ORAS came out and I've kinda been blowing through that with all the soft resetting and breeding and stuff. Well, again I'm sorry for the long wait and I hope that you guys still dig my story, we're finishing up the Wave Arc this chapter finally, and first 10k words! Not amazing to some of you but I don't write. XD And **if you guys have any questions or just want to recommend me an idea or pairing or weapon or something, PM me alright, I don't really respond to the recommendations left in the reviews! XD **Well enough about me saying sorry and stuff, you just wanna read right! Well let's a go!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 6<p>

(Time skip - 1 week later)

The days following Team 12 and Tazuna's return to his home were relatively tranquil minus the incident the first night back. During that period, Naruto managed to recover enough from his injury to do some very light training thanks to Anko's medical knowledge which him and his team found out about a few days ago when she was tending to him.

(Flashback 2 days ago - Start)

"There, that should take care of any of the lasting pain. Anything else ache or feel tight?" Anko asked, scanning Naruto with her **Shōsen Jutsu** to check for any injuries that she missed.

"Ah, no. I'm fine now, thank you Anko-sensei." Naruto replied, slowly rotating his shoulder to see if there was any pain in it.

Seeing her student start moving something she just finished healing, Anko's eyebrow twitched before she hit him on the head. "You idiot! Don't just start moving right away, let your injuries settle down for at least an hour!" Her fist and the bump on Naruto's head smoking while Yakumo and Satsuki laughed wryly.

After the whole ordeal, Yakumo turned to and asked her how she knew Iryō Ninjutsu. "Anko-sensei, how do you know iryō ninjutsu? I've never heard of anyone outside of the hospital and medical team that know it." As Satsuki and Naruto also looked at her with curious gazes.

Seeing the looks of her students, she gave them a small smile and told them the reason. "Well, Tsunade-sama has always pushed for a regime that made medical ninja a permanent addition to squads, to reduce the rate of casualties by having support in the event a member gets injured. Of course Minato-sama also agreed, but was overruled by the council, saying that they couldn't afford to risk medical ninja being casualties themselves since they're such a valuable resource to the village. But after that time, Tsunade-sama herself, offered to teach those who were willing to learn. At first, being an Anbu-captain at that time I wasn't interested at all, but then Orochimaru-sama told me that a captain wasn't just the strongest, fastest, or most knowledgeable; they were the ones who were responsible for making sure that their team made it out in one piece. At first I was skeptical, so I didn't take it completely to heart. The next mission after that, I lost my entire squad to a ambush set up by the same nuke-nin we were hunting down. If I had taken up Tsunade-sama's training, I would've been able to save at least one of them but in the end I failed them and they all died. After I retired from the Anbu and asked Tsunade-sama for her training which she said I mastered to the level of a head medic, which really surprised me and her since it only took a year. And well, that's where I am now! I learned it so that I don't lose anyone to my own powerlessness ever again, and I'm glad that I did." After finishing her story, she was met with the teary eyes of her genin, which unnerved her greatly as they threw praises at her the rest of the night, to her embarrassment.

(Flashback - End)

After that, Naruto was peppered with questions about the skills he showcased when he faced Zabuza a week ago. However they all got the same response when they asked him, including Anko.

"The situation was serious."

After a trying to get a different answer, they all eventually gave up. Naruto wasn't going to tell them and they didn't want to pry anymore then they already have. After things settled down, they learned of the situation of the Wave from Tazuna and Tsunami, that after Gato had taken control of it, its people had begun living in fear and poverty because of the tyrant. Things weren't that kind to the family either as they learned that Tsunami's husband, Kaiza, was tortured before they publicly executed him in the view of the entire village. That was what led to Inari's stark personality change from a optimistic and smiling boy to the pessimistic and perpetually frowning boy that they've seen.

Things seemed tense for a while when Inari snapped at the Konoha ninja and his family yesterday, saying that they had no chance against Gato. Naruto had scared the boy when he became angry before he left the house, returning in a slightly better mood the next day to the surprise of the group.

(Flashback - Yesterday)

"Why do you guys bother to try so hard?! No matter how hard you train, you're still no match for Gato's men! No matter what glorious claims you make or how hard you work, the weak will only end up getting killed!" Inari shouted at the group during dinner, his eyes burning with hatred looking at the Konoha ninja gathered around the dinner table.

Hearing Inari's words, Anko quickly lost the grin on her face, Satsuki stared intently at him, Yakumo's mouth thinned into a small line, but immediately the atmosphere turned tense when Naruto slowly stood up and looked at the boy, matching his glare with an icy gaze.

"Why do we bother trying so hard? No matter what we do, we're gonna get killed by Gato's men? Are you an idiot?" Naruto whispered in a cold tone, his icy gaze intensifying with every second passing.

Everyone was unable to speak, never had any of them seen the blonde act like this. Inari was able to find his voice to retort, though it was in a shaky tone.

"I-I told you that it's hopeless. K-Kaiza was my hero, h-he told me that heroes exist and that you would be able to follow your dreams if you worked hard enough. But he died, Gato killed him! He was the Hero of the Wave, the person I dreamed of being! If Gato killed him, you guys aren't going to be able to beat him..." Inari was sniffling now, rubbing his eyes as tears made their way down his cheeks.

The situation remained tense, and increased even more when Naruto pulled out his Basutāsōdo and held it next to him.

"You see this? This isn't just a sword; this is a symbol of my dreams and my honor, passed down to me from someone I held close to my heart. So what if it seems hopeless? No matter what happens, you should never give up. You say that dreams and heroes don't exist, then embrace your dreams and become one. If you want to be a hero, you _need_ to have dreams." Naruto said, his icy gaze warming up slightly as he finished his monologue.

Taking his sword, he made his way to the door, stopping before he addressed Inari once more before he left.

"I'm no hero nor will I ever be one, but I've embraced my dreams. If someone like me did it, then you can do it too."

As the door closed with a soft click, Inari looked down at his hands, mulling over the words that the blonde said to him.

"_Embrace your dreams. If you want to be a hero, you need to have dreams. Embrace my dreams...?_"

While Inari looked at his hands, the others, namely his team looked at the door where he left having the same thought running through their heads.

"_Naruto..."_

(Scene change - Unknown part of the forest)

After his little explosive monologue at the house, Naruto needed to get some fresh air, he still didn't know why he blew up and said such things. Seeing as he wouldn't be going back anytime soon, he decided to train through the night, honing his kenjutsu in preparation for his rematch with Zabuza. Eventually, after a few hours of training, his body still recovering, he leaned against a tree and let sleep take over.

Morning soon came, with it a beautiful raven haired girl in a pink kimono picking herbs. Haku was getting the remaining ingredients for a painkiller that she was making for Zabuza. Sighing at the attitude of her master, for the past few days he was complaining about blonde brats and weak-ass kenjutsu skills, she finally had decided to get some fresh air and leave their temporary hideout.

As she hummed a happy tune and foraged for what she was looking for, she froze when she saw him. The same blonde that had caused such damage to her master a few days earlier. She contemplated killing him here and now, from what she had seen he was much more of a threat if he was able to get Zabuza-sama this riled up. Slowly reaching out for his neck, she was surprised when she got her wrist grabbed by the still sleeping shinobi.

Panicking slightly, Haku was about to pry off his hand when she saw his eyes opened. Captivated by those dark navy blue eyes, Haku momentarily forgot about the situation that she was in until it was broken by the blonde.

"Mind telling me what you're trying to do?" He asked, his face blank though his eyes seemed to stare into her soul.

"It looked like you fell asleep there; it's very cold out here in the forest you know. I was going to wake you up but you grabbed me instead." She said in a gentle tone, a smile on her face. As she said that, she felt the grip he had on her wrist vanish.

"My apologies, I'm a little on edge right now. Forgive my rudeness." Naruto said, getting up and bowing slightly, much to Haku's embarrassment.

"I-It's no problem, please don't bow to me, I'm not someone who deserves to be bowed at!" she replied in a slightly panicky tone, obliviously not used to being apologized to.

After the two introduced themselves, Naruto had offered to help Haku find the herbs that she was looking for, much to her surprise though she accepted. As the two worked together, Haku couldn't help but feel the need to talk to the blonde though she knew it wasn't a smart move.

"Naruto-san, may I ask why you were training so hard?" She asked, curiosity clearly in her voice. Turning to her, Naruto answered her question to her surprise, not expecting him to answer a stranger's question.

"I have the dreams and the honor of someone close to me riding on my shoulders. I need to get stronger so that in the future, I'll be able to stand next to him as his equal." He said with such passion that Haku blushed slightly.

"They must be someone very precious to you." Haku said in a quiet tone of voice as she looked down, looking up she was met with a small smile that had her heart racing for a little bit, a blush on her face from seeing the handsome blonde.

"Yeah, they were very precious to me." Naruto said, with a faraway look in his eyes.

Finishing up, Naruto stood next to Haku as he handed her the rest of the herbs that she needed. As they were about to part ways, Naruto called out to her.

"Haku-san, send Zabuza-san my best regards. I'm expecting him to be ready for our rematch soon." As the words left his mouth, she nearly dropped her basket, pulling out a handful of senbon as she questioned him.

"You knew? If you knew then why did you help me?!" She shouted, in disbelief that he would actively and knowingly help his enemy. But the answer she got wasn't what she expected.

"Because I feel like you're similar to me. We both have someone who's precious to us, and we'll do anything to make sure that they're happy. And also, I don't want a handicapped duel because he's still injured." He said, walking away back to Tazuna's house, leaving a speechless Haku behind.

Staring at the back of the blonde, Haku couldn't remove the light fluttery feeling in her heart that she felt from the blonde's words. Giggling softly to herself, she didn't know it herself, but she headed back to the hideout in a happier mood then when she left.

When Naruto got back to the house, he was once again interrogated by Anko about his little outburst and where he went during the night, getting the same blank faced reply of "It was nothing important," before giving up and letting him off the hook.

(Flashback - End)

(Time skip - 5 days later)

As the days came and went, Team 12 beginning their training as Tazuna said the bridge would be complete by the end of next week, giving them one final week to prepare for Zabuza's inevitable return. During that time period, Anko had noticed that her genin had began to change slightly as they saw more and more of the situation of Nami no Kuni.

After he was evaluated to be fit for duty by Anko, Naruto now walked around with the same giant sword they had seen him use strapped to his back. He was also training much more seriously then they had seen, doing exercises that made Anko cringe like balancing on the tip of his sword using his fingertips. She had also noticed that he was beginning to open up very slightly when around them, seeing a very small smile appear and disappear on his face.

Satsuki was training like there was no tomorrow. She had asked Anko for instruction on iryō ninjutsu, chakra control exercises, and surprisingly Suiton jutsu, not the typical Katon jutsu that the Uchiha used. After prodding from both Anko and Yakumo, she eventually told them the reason why.

(Flashback - 2 days ago)

"So Satsuki, are you going to tell us why you're not asking for any Katon jutsu? I have a whole bunch that I can teach you, you know?" Anko said, her arms crossed over her chest as she smiled at Satsuki in a teasing manner.

"Yeah Satsuki, doesn't the Uchiha clan specialize in Katon jutsu? Suiton jutsu is the complete opposite, not that it's uncommon to use both." Yakumo asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Fine already! I have a natural disposition to Suiton jutsu and I can't really use Katon jutsu because of that! I got it from my mom!" Satsuki said, her face red with embarrassment. An Uchiha who couldn't use Katon jutsu wasn't an Uchiha at all. Unlike her other clan members, her mother and herself had a Suiton based chakra affinities which made it difficult for them to use Katon based jutsu because they were natural opposites.

"That's all? You know that's not something that you should really be feeling down about you know." Anko said in a gentle tone, as she ruffled the hair of her student, much to her embarrassment.

"I have the same problem as you Satsuki, my clan specialized in Katon jutsu but my father, mother, and I all have Suiton based chakra affinity. It really makes it hard to use Katon jutsu, I know." Yakumo told her friend, who looked surprised at her statement.

As Satsuki smiled slightly, knowing that they didn't think any less of her, they turned their attention to the last member of their team. Naruto feeling their stares looked up from sharpening his sword and stared right back at them.

"So what about you Naruto? Do you know your elemental affinity?" Anko asked the question on everyone's mind, but the answer that they got back shocked them all.

"I'm Futon, Raiton, and Katon based." He said, before turning back and sharpening his blade, ignoring the looks of shock on his team's faces.

(Flashback - End)

After the small moment of team bonding, Anko had given Satsuki a few scrolls on some Suiton and iryō ninjutsu.

Yakumo was similar to Satsuki, asking Anko for the same things, knowledge on Suiton and iryō ninjutsu. She also noticed that she would always accompany Tsunami when she would go shopping, and when she returned she had a very sullen look on her face, most likely from seeing the situation first hand.

As the end of the week neared, a very dire situation that involved Team 12 happened, one that caused them to see a much darker side of one of its members.

Yakumo, Satsuki, and Naruto were all walking through the worn down roads of Nami no Kuni, getting groceries for Tsunami to make dinner. They all offered when Tsunami had twisted her ankle earlier in the day after slipping in the kitchen. As they were about to head back, they heard the sound of muffled screaming and immediately went to investigate. What they found was a group of thuggish men taking a girl around their age into a worn down building.

Seeing that scene, rage burned in their eyes. Making their way stealthily inside, they overheard them speak. And the more they spoke, the more their rage built up.

"So you guys found a fresh one?" A tall and brutish looking man said, admiring the new piece of "merchandise" that was brought in.

"Hehe, sure did boss. Gato'll pay quite the price for this one I bet, probably been hiding all this time but we saw her walking alone a few minutes ago." A tall and skinny looking man sneered, his eyes trailing the body of their new catch.

"Hey boss, why don't we check if she's fresh? After all, don't want to give Gato something used right?" A short and fat man said, wiping the drool off his lips.

"Fine, but just don't break her." The brutish man said, walking into the back of the building, as the other men started to approach the bound girl.

Unable to hold herself back anymore, Satsuki was about to lunge at them, but was stopped by Naruto. She was about to punch him and then save that girl but as she cocked her fist back, she saw something that made her very soul shiver. His eyes were the same reptilian and electric blue that he had when he faced Zabuza.

Yakumo was about to drop down, and take care of those men until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She was about to slap it off and return to her plan until she turned slightly and saw the absolutely terrifying glow of her teammate's eyes. As she was about to speak, he spoke to both of them.

"Satsuki, Yakumo. Take them down." With that he dropped down, his eyes cold and unforgiving, as he landed smashing his fist into the ground causing a small tremor to resonate in the building. As Satsuki and Yakumo landed next to him, their eyes cold and unforgiving as well. Without a word, they charged the group of men as they were still in shock.

Satsuki lashed out with a vicious kick to the leg of the skinny man, getting a snap from the force of her body weight and the momentum she had built up. Without waiting, she swung her elbow and caught him on the side of the head, as he stumbled over. Spinning around once again, she hit him in the head, sending his head flying into the ground with an audible crack.

Yakumo's fist caught the portly man in the face, breaking his nose as he reeled back about to cry out in agony, without hesitation she spun on her foot and gave him a kick to temple as he started to drop to the ground unconscious. Quickly dropping her foot, her heel accelerated and smashed his face into the ground with a crack echoing.

As they finished up, Naruto had picked up the girl that they had kidnapped, the terror in her eyes ignited something inside of him. Silently he turned to face the remaining group of men, from 9 to 7, they stood with their backs to the wall weapons drawn. Before any of Team 12 could act, their leader ran out of the back room his eyes lit with fury.

"What the fuck!" He shouted, as his frantically scanned the room, his eyes settling on the group of kids holding onto _his_ property. Rage started to fill his veins as he immediately shouted at his men as he walked closer to them.

"The fuck're you waiting around for! They're just kids, kill them already!" But a thought rang in his mind as he saw Satsuki and Yakumo as a twisted smile came to his face. "Never mind that, kill the boy but don't be too rough on those girls. They'll definitely be worth a lot."

Hearing his words, Satsuki and Yakumo felt a shiver run up their spines from the lecherous look that they were getting from the man, making them feel sick to their stomach. Before they could retort, Naruto turned slightly to face them and stretched his arms with the girl out towards them.

"Take her and get out of here, I'll meet you two back at Tazuna-san's home." He said quietly. As they were about to retort, they saw his eyes and immediately all anger was replaced with fear. His eyes weren't the same electric blue but were now a dark crimson. Handing the girl to Satsuki broke the two out of their spell as he turned around and spoke to them once more, his voice carrying a much darker tone then before.

"Now."

With that they quickly exited the building, something inside of their hearts screamed at them that he was dangerous and to get as far away from him as possible.

With his teammates gone, Naruto stared at the group of men in front of him, some of them cowered slightly but for the most part all of them just gave him cocky smiles. One of the men, a tall fat one approached him with the same cocky grin on his face as he told Naruto of his situation.

"You just sealed your own death kid, after we're done with you those girls are next. But don't you worry, we'll take real good car-GWOOF!"

But before he could finish, Naruto had buried a fist into his stomach, making the man bend over clutching his gut. Removing his fist, he lashed out and rammed his left hand into his mouth his thumb hooked into his chin. Before the man could react, with a sickening crunch and squelch, Naruto ripped the man's bottom jaw off.

Unbridled horror was the only way to describe the scene that they had just witnessed, a few of them vomited at the scene. They had seen Jubo get his lower jaw ripped off by this kid, no this monster. As Jubo frantically grabbed at where his jaw had been, making horrifying unintelligible sounds of agony. Naruto dropped his jaw on the ground before lightning erupted from his right hand, as his hand shot towards and grabbed Jubo's head, Naruto whispered the name of his technique.

"**Raiton: Jinrai**"

As his hand connected, a flash of light blinded the group and roar of thunder caused them to lose their hearing and vision momentarily. What they saw next caused them to drop to the floor as fear filled their hearts. Naruto was holding the emaciated and smoking remains of Jubo, as he dropped the corpse, it disintegrated upon hitting the floor of the building into a pile of ash. Looking at them with the same crimson eyes, he said something that made their blood freeze as he started walking towards them.

"None of you are leaving here alive."

The screams that followed were quickly silenced, being replaced with the sounds of throats being crushed, bone snapping, muscle being shredded, and blood being spilled. The tall brutish man before was the only left of his group, backed into the corner of the building as he sobbed and shook uncontrollably, his eyes were wide and unfocused with unbridled terror as Naruto slowly made his way over to him, covered in the blood of his men. Seeing the blonde, he started pleading for his life.

"Please! Please don't kill me! I didn't want to be a part of any of this! Gato made me do this! I swear! I beg of you, please spare me! I'll tell you everything! I promise I'll change! Just let me go!" Sazu sobbed as he got on his knees to beg. His head was forced to look up by a hand and his terrified brown eyes met burning crimson as he paled from the words that left the blonde's mouth.

"You're going to tell me no matter what." Naruto replied his hand that was holding Sazu's head started to emit a blackish crimson smoke.

"**Meiryuuton: Zenrei Kuikorosu**" Naruto whispered as the smoke condensed into a blackish crimson aura as the Sazu started screaming, feeling like his very being was being ripped away from his body. Never before had he felt such excruciating pain, or rather he wished for the sweet feeling of pain then this 'Hell on Earth' he was being subjected to. Suddenly, Naruto yanked his hand back, ripping out Sazu's soul as his body crumpled to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

After ripping out Sazu's soul, Naruto closed his eyes as he started to integrate the knowledge that the soul held into his own. Finding out all of the future operations of Gato and the places where kidnapped victims were held, that Sazu had knowledge of. Opening them again, they had lost the burning crimson and were once again the same dull navy blue as before.

Burning the bodies of the thugs with a simple Katon jutsu, and washing most of the blood off him with the hose that was nearby, Naruto headed back to Tazuna's home to take a much needed shower.

As Satsuki and Yakumo fled the building with the girl, Ami, they found her mother looking around frantically for her. Reuniting the two, they returned to Tazuna's house to wait for their blonde teammate, hoping that he'd return in one piece.

Their hopes were answered when Naruto entered the house, covered in a little bit of blood. Instantly they were over him asking if he was alright, about what happened back there with his eyes, and about the thugs.

Telling the two that he took care of them and tied them up for whoever was in charge of security to take them in, relieved that their premonition that he killed them was wrong, the unease they felt left their hearts as they breathed a sigh of relief. After telling Anko of the situation, she was proud that her genin did what they did but not after she scolded and lectured them that what they did was reckless and stupid. After the interrogating that Anko put them through, Naruto specifically, she let them off the hook seeing as they had a rough day.

(Time skip - 3 days later)

After nearly 2 weeks of waiting and training, Team 12's mission was close to being drawn to a close. Tazuna had told them that the finishing touches to the bridge were being made, that they should be finished with it by the end of the day. Excited both about the bridge being finished and about going home, the group decided not to train for the day, opting to save their energy in case of an emergency. Anko assigning her genin times to guard Tazuna on the bridge and having them rotate every few hours.

As the day carried on, the sun beginning to descend below the horizon, Naruto and Yakumo were supposed to be rotated with Anko and Satsuki, but Yakumo insisted that she stayed, feeling like something was going to happen if both of them left Tazuna unguarded. Seeing as he wouldn't be able to change her mind and agreed with her, Naruto told her to tell Anko when she and Satsuki arrived. With that, Naruto headed back to Tazuna's house to check in on the family and rest.

(Scene change - Tazuna's home)

Tsunami was in the kitchen starting to wash the dishes from lunch, as Inari was in the bathroom washing up. Unknown to the two of them, two unknown people smirked as they drew closer to the house.

"Inari dear, could you hurry up and come help me with the dishes please?" Tsunami called out to her son, as she rinsed the leftovers off the plates and stacked them to the side.

"Coming mom, I'm almost done." Inari called back, as he was about to head out of the bathroom door, he heard his mom cry out and started to run to the kitchen.

"Kyah!" Tsunami cried out, her eyes widened as two men kicked the door to her house in.

"So you must be Tazuna's daughter Tsunami huh?" The taller of the two said as he and his partner started to approach her.

"Sorry, but you'll be coming with us." The shorter one said, as he reached out to grab her arm.

"Mom!" As he was about to grab her, Inari ran into the room, shouting for his mom and froze when he saw the men in his home.

"There's a kid here? Should we take him too?" The tall man asked, inclining his head slightly towards his partner.

"Nah, we don't need him, we only need her. Get rid of him." He sneered, as his partner pulled out his sword. But before any of them could do anything, Tsunami shouted at them.

"Don't you dare touch Inari! If you so much as touch a hair on his head, I'll bite my tongue off and drown myself!" She shouted, her eyes burning.

As his mom valiantly made a demand for his life, Inari could only fall onto his backside and start crying. Wishing that he could help his mom, that he could be a hero like Kaiza.

(Scene change - The Bridge)

Arriving at their destination, Anko and Satsuki were surprised when they saw Yakumo with a kunai in her hand glancing around intently. Approaching her, Anko demanded to know what she was still doing here, but was surprised when the normally quiet girl told her that she didn't feel right leaving Tazuna unguarded, even for a few minutes. About to praise her for her thoughtfulness, Anko stiffened and started glancing around when a mist started to appear.

"So, looks like he's finally here." Anko said, narrowing her eyes as she drew a kunai from her pouch. Satsuki following suit, as she quickly went to stand by Yakumo. The atmosphere was broken when a scream echoed out of the mist, causing the three to quickly rush to where it originated. And what they saw made them, especially Satsuki and Yakumo, freeze. Tazuna was kneeling down, holding one of the workers in his arms; the others were either unconscious or dead.

"What happened here!" He shouted, his eyes wide in disbelief. Noticing that Anko and her students had arrived.

"De-demon. Ca-came out of the mi-mist." Stuttered the man before he lost consciousness.

"Demon? Then… That means…" Yakumo began, pulling out a kunai as she steadied herself into a defensive stance as she scanned the area.

"…Zabuza is back." Satsuki finished, pulling out her own kunai as she took a defensive stance next to her teammate and Tazuna.

"Everyone be on guard, you've seen what he's capable of. But don't expect things to go any easier, expect them to be much harder." Anko said as she narrowed her eyes and tensed up, summoning her trusted tanto that she's had since her time as an Anbu operative.

As the group readied themselves, a thin mist started to roll in. Seeing the familiar mist, the group tensed a bead of sweat falling down Yakumo, Satsuki, and Tazuna's head while Anko tightened the grip on her tanto.

Soon, two silhouettes were visible as they approached the group. One was familiar while the other wasn't, as they were finally out of the mist they spoke.

"Hmm… Where's the blond brat? Me and him have unfinished business to attend to." Zabuza said, as he scanned the group for Naruto.

"Sorry, but he's not going to be joining us, you're just going to have to settle for little ol' me." Anko said in a cool tone as she took a step forward.

"I don't have time to waste dealing with you, I have a duel I need to finish." He said as he narrowed his eyes, tightening his grip on his Kubikiribōchō. But before he could do anything his companion stepped forward.

"Zabuza-sama, please allow me to deal with these kunoichi, save your strength for the boy. He is bound to return sooner or later." Haku said as she readied a handful of senbon.

Seeing Haku acting so willfully, Zabuza let a small smile work itself onto his face. Sighing at first, he went ahead and gave her the ok.

Before Haku could move though, Anko had closed the distance between herself and Zabuza, her tanto poised to pierce his heart as he swung his Kubikiribōchō to block the strike, resulting in a screech of metal and a shower of sparks.

"Change of plans Haku, take care of those brats, I'll take her on." Zabuza said as he narrowed his eyes, surprised by the speed and stealth of Anko.

Snapping out of her stupor, Haku nodded before she moved to engage Satsuki and Yakumo, the two narrowing their eyes as they readied themselves for their opponent.

"You know that your genin aren't a match for Haku. She's at least jōnin while those two are chūnin at best." Zabuza said in an attempt to throw off Anko, who gave a small smirk in return.

"You say that, but don't think that just because those two aren't as skilled as Naruto, that they can't hold their own." Retorted Anko, having seen the exceptional growth that her team had over the course of the past two weeks.

As they finished exchanging words, Zabuza and Anko returned to their battle, their blades colliding in a brilliant shower of sparks.

(Scene change - Yakumo and Satsuki vs. Haku)

While their leaders were fighting, the three girls across the bridge had finally made contact with each other. Yakumo and Satsuki going immediately on the offensive, throwing a volley of shuriken at Haku, who to their complete shock, dodged without trouble.

"I'm sorry, but I'm probably the worst opponent for the two of you to face off." Haku said in a slightly apologetic tone, as she drew a handful of senbon.

Narrowing her eyes, Satsuki didn't take kindly to the tone of voice that Haku was speaking in.

"Don't speak to us like you're better then us!" She shouted before locking eyes with Yakumo, who nodded her head before they re-engaged with their masked opponent.

Flashing throw a series of hand seals, Satsuki locked onto Haku before she said "**Suiton: Teppōdama!**" As she fired off a volley of basketball sized bullets of water at Haku as Yakumo readied her own set of seals.

Preoccupied with dodging the surprisingly fast bullets of water, Haku never noticed that Yakumo had finished her own set of seals until she heard her speak.

"I'm ready Satsuki!" Yakumo called out, before Satsuki ended her assault and jumped to the side, exposing Haku to her.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa**!" Yakumo said, as she put her hands in front of her mouth and fired a fast medium-sized jet of water that managed to connect with a stunned Haku, blasting her a few meters back.

(Scene change - Anko vs. Zabuza)

Seeing her genin handle the kunoichi that Zabuza said was jōnin level brought a smile to Anko's face, the teamwork that the two displayed was absolutely astounding. Her confidence now increased by ten-fold, she wasn't going to be shown up by her girls and applied more pressure to the stunned Zabuza. Slashing and stabbing with renewed vigor as he blocked and countered her strikes.

Zabuza was shocked, he didn't expect those two girls to take down Haku, but after the shock came confidence. Haku had probably forgotten that it wasn't one on one, but two on one, now that she actually got hit, she wouldn't make the same mistake twice. A smirk was hidden behind his bandages as he blocked a slash aimed at the back of his neck, and retaliated with a back fist that was avoided.

"Looks like your partner isn't as tough as you made her out to be." Anko jeered at Zabuza, however she didn't expect to get a dark chuckle in return.

"You keep talking all you want, Haku fell for a decent little plan, but now she won't fall for it again. Just hope that your genin won't be too torn up once she's done with them." Zabuza said as he charged Anko once again, noticing that she had stiffened up slightly at the foreboding words.

(Scene change - Yakumo and Satsuki vs. Haku)

Haku was angry at herself for forgetting that there were two opponents, not just one. While the black haired girl rained bullets of water at her, she momentarily forgot about the brown haired girl behind her until she was hit by a jet of water, which sent her flying back and knocked the air out of her lungs.

Having had enough, Haku decided to finish the battle before the tide shifted in their favor.

"I have to admit, your team work is extraordinary. But I have to end things here." Haku whispered, slipping into the mist as it started to become thicker then it was before.

After their plan worked, Satsuki and Yakumo were feeling unbeatable, that is, until they heard the voice of their opponent echo out of the mist, which seemed to have gotten thicker over the past few minutes, as they regrouped to continue their attack.

Standing back to back, they tensed as they lost sight of their opponent. Frantically scanning the area, they failed to find a trace of her as the mist devoured their field of view, limiting it to only a meter at best.

Finally, they heard or rather saw her, as their eyes widened in fear at what they had heard and saw.

"**Hyōton: Makyō Hyōshō**." Haku said, as a dome of mirrors made of ice surrounded the duo, an image of their opponent in each and every one.

"I'm sorry, but this will be the end for the two of you." Haku said ominously before steel rained down on the two.

(Scene change - Tazuna's house)

As tears started to fall from his eyes at the selflessness of his mother, Inari couldn't help but feel powerless as the two men shrugged and advanced on his mother.

Falling deeper into despair, Inari had flashbacks to his times spent with his mother, grandfather, and Kaiza. Then it flashed to the words that Naruto left him before he left the house that night.

Gritting his teeth and steeling his resolve, Inari stood up before he charged the two men that had his mother in their clutches, ignoring the taller of the two men unsheathing his sword.

"INARI!" Screamed Tsunami, seeing that her son was about to be cut down even after she bartered with her own life.

"Have fun in hell brat!" The man said as he swung at Inari, aiming to cleave him in two.

But the strike never came, the sound of flesh being cut didn't resound and instead the sound of metal against metal screeched violently throughout the house.

Everyone stopped, Tsunami and Inari tearing up at the sight of the newcomer while the men however, froze in fear. His Basutāsōdo blocking the strike intended for Inari, Naruto stood firm, his eyes freezing the very soul of the man in front of him.

Before anyone could say anything, Naruto swung and sent the sword in the man's hand flying before slamming the flat of his blade against the back of his head, a sickening crack resulting from the blow.

Seeing his partner get beaten down so easily, the shorter man quickly brought his sword up to Tsunami's neck in a desperate attempt to seize control of the situation.

"Don't you fucking move! If you do, her neck gets cut open!" He screamed, his eyes wide in fear and anger. Seeing that Naruto had stopped, he smirked before barking out his demands.

"Good, now drop your sword and put your arm out to the side. Do anything else and she gets it." He said, edging the blade closer to Tsunami's neck to prove his point.

Naruto did as he was instructed but he confused the man when a small smirk appeared on his face.

"The fuck are you smiling about! I said that you do anything else an-GWAAAH!" He didn't get to finish his statement as Inari smashed his groin with a brick. While his attention was focused solely on Naruto, he never noticed that Inari was slowly inching his way towards him and his mother.

Letting go of Tsunami and instinctively reaching down to cover his groin, he didn't notice that Naruto had reached his side until his world went black when Naruto's foot connected with the side of his head, sending him flying a few feet.

The thugs dispatched with, Inari and Tsunami embraced each other, tears streaming down their faces at the brush with death that both had experienced. Eventually, they stopped when Naruto approached the two, his face still blank.

But slowly, a small smile came to his face as he reached out and ruffled Inari's hair softly. "That was a very brave thing to do Inari. Ignoring your own safety to save your mother. That right there is something that a hero would do." Naruto said as Inari's eyes went wide as he looked at him.

"Re-Really...?" Inari timidly said, still in disbelief at what the teen had said.

With a smile filled with love and pride, Tsunami hugged Inari tighter. "He's right Inari, you did something that a hero would do."

Removing his hand from Inari's head, Naruto quickly told the two to find someplace safe to stay, telling them that a battle is definitely going to happen before he ran to the bridge.

Staring at the back of the teen, Inari gained a determined face before he nodded and ran towards the center of the village, his mother quickly chasing after him.

(Scene change - Yakumo and Satsuki vs. Haku)

Pain. Pain was all that she could feel at the moment. After Satsuki and herself were trapped in this dome of ice, their opponent had rained down steel on them. No matter how much they tried to dodge or counterattack, they weren't able to land a solid blow on her.

In contrast to their opponent who's only visible damage were the tears in the her kimono, Yakumo and Satsuki were covered in blood and senbon from Haku's relentless assault. She never let up her attacks and simply dodged mirror to mirror when they used their jutsu and weapons against her.

"Ha... Ha... Ya-Yakumo, what do w-we do now?" Satsuki asked, the pain she was feeling was like no other she had felt before. Her body was starting to go numb and she knew that Yakumo wasn't faring any better.

"I... I don't k-know Satsuki. She's too fast for us to hit, and we don't know which mirror she's hiding in. We-we're outclassed here." Yakumo said in a slightly defeated tone, the situation being extremely dire, the tide of battle in favor of their opponent.

Hearing her teammate's defeated tone, Satsuki could only grit her teeth and clench her fists, knowing that what Yakumo said was true.

"..." Observing the duo, Haku felt pity for them. Like the brown haired girl said, they were outmatched, especially since they were trapped in her jutsu. Deciding that it was time to end it, she drew another handful of senbon and took aim at the black haired girl.

Seeing their opponent draw another handful of senbon, Yakumo and Satsuki tensed up, fear and apprehension visible on their faces. However, Yakumo noticed amidst the mist and mirrors, their opponent's hand come flying out of the mirror to the upper-right of Satsuki, the flash of steel heading towards Satsuki overruling her sense of self-preservation,

Without thinking, Yakumo shoved Satsuki out of the way of the senbon.

Hitting the ground after being shoved by Yakumo, Satsuki turned to shout but the words died in her throat when she saw Yakumo's chest get pierced by a volley of senbon. The shout that died in her throat was revived as scream when Yakumo hit the ground and remain motionless.

"YAKUMO!"

Ignoring the searing pain that coursed through her body, Satsuki sprinted to her teammate and cradled her body in her arms.

"YAKUMO! YAKUMO WAKE UP!" She shouted, shaking her teammate, her eyes wide in disbelief and grief. Her shouts were answered when she got a soft groan in response.

"Sa-Satsuki..." Yakumo said weakly, her eyes glazed and unfocused as she weakly held the hand of her teammate.

"Idiot... You idiot... Why...? WHY DID YOU DO THAT!?" Satsuki demanded, tears flowing from her eyes as she questioned her teammate's decision to save her.

"Haha... Why...? We're teammates... Satsuki... and... we're friends... Right?" Yakumo weakly responded, her brown eyes staring into Satsuki's tear filled onyx colored ones.

Tears flowing freely from her eyes, Satsuki tightened her grip on Yakumo's hand before she lowered her head, her body shaking slightly at Yakumo's words.

"Sniff... Yeah... We're friends... You're my best friend... My first friend and my first best friend... So please... PLEASE DON'T DIE! Don't leave me Yakumo!" Satsuki swallowed her pride and voiced the thoughts that rang true in her heart.

Over the past few months of working, training, hanging out, and eating together. Yakumo had become the first person to melt the ice that encased her heart, The first person that Satsuki could honestly call a "friend", a word and notion that for thirteen years, eluded her.

Yakumo widened her eyes at Satsuki's tearful confession before they closed slightly, tears falling from her eyes as a smile appeared on her face as she squeezed Satsuki's hand back.

"I'm... I'm glad Satsuki... I really am... I'm glad that I got to know the real you... I'm glad that I got to see how sweet and strong you really are... And I'm glad that I'm your best friend because... You're my best friend too..." Closing her eyes, Yakumo gave Satsuki a brilliant smile that sapped the last of her strength.

Feeling the grip of her best friend loosen, Satsuki could only look on in disbelief as Yakumo's hand fell onto her stomach and remained there. She didn't move, she didn't breathe, she just stayed still.

"Ya-Yakumo...? Yakumo wake up, this isn't funny. We-We're supposed to get through this now and go back home to-together. Yakumo...? Ya-Yakumo...? " Softly shaking the now cold body of her best friend, Satsuki could only whimper and beg her to wake up. After a few minutes, Satsuki gently put her down and stood up, her bangs obscuring her eyes.

Throughout the whole exchange, Haku remained silent. Letting Satsuki grieve over her loss. She felt a pang shoot through her heart seeing the strong girl from before become a shell of her former self but that was the life of a ninja, the life that they lived. But what she wasn't prepared for was what happened next.

Standing in the middle of the dome, next to the corpse of her best friend, Satsuki couldn't feel anything. The pain from before was gone, in its place a strange numbness throbbed throughout her body. But soon, that too was replaced by a burning fury that coursed through her veins. Snapping her head up, she locked on with the mirror that contained her opponent to their shock, her onyx eyes were now crimson, her left eye having one tomoe and her right eye two. She sped through a series of hand seals at astonishing speed before she growled at Haku.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" She shouted before calling out a jutsu that shocked Haku, not expecting a girl like her to know such a powerful jutsu.

"**SUITON: SUIRYŪDAN NO JUTSU**!" Satsuki roared as dragon made of water formed behind her roaring before it charged towards a stunned Haku.

(Scene change - Anko vs. Zabuza)

Hearing Satsuki's grief-stricken scream of Yakumo's name, Anko froze, knowing that something horrible must have happened. Her suspicions were then answered when Satsuki used the jutsu that she had taught the two of them earlier in the week, one that she had deliberately told them to never use unless it was an emergency.

"Well looks like Haku took care of one of them. I'll admit, they sure did give her a hard time. That brat managed to use a **Suiryūdan** huh, pretty impressive." Zabuza commented, blocking a strike from an enraged Anko.

"I'm going to end the two of you in the most painful way possible." She whispered, her eyes cold and sharp, promising to act on her threat as she lunged forward with her tanto catching Zabuza on the arm.

"Scary eyes you got there, but that's all that scary." He responded, getting cut slightly by her tanto. Side stepping, he slipped by her guard before swinging Kubikiribōchō in a vertical slash to bisect her, which Anko dodged, retaliating with a side swipe which Zabuza blocked once again.

They had been fighting for almost an hour now, both were covered in cuts and scratches, but nothing debilitating enough to cause one to gain the upper hand. Having had enough of this battle, Anko flashed through a series of seals before glaring at Zabuza.

"**Sen'eijashu**!" Anko shouted before a series of snakes shot out of her sleeves towards Zabuza, who managed to evade all but one snake.

"GAH!" Zabuza shouted, having had one of the snakes land a bite on his forearm. Immediately after being bit, his arm went numb and slowly he lost the ability to use it, the feeling of numbness slowly creeping its way up his arm.

"Heh, looks like it's game over Zabuza. The snake that bit you didn't have any of the more deadly venom, it had a powerful paralytic neurotoxin. It won't kill you, but you're not going to be moving anytime soon.

Just as Zabuza was about to make a retort, a wave of water crashed nearby, Haku appearing next to him slightly out of breath with her leg slightly bent out of place.

"Ha... Ha,... My apologizes Zabuza-sama. But I wasn't able to finish off the other girl. She surprised me with her jutsu and managed to escape from my **Makyō Hyōshō**." Haku reported in a dejected tone, supporting her master as he lost the feeling from left side of his body.

Arriving to the scene next was Satsuki holding Yakumo bridal style, who quickly made her way to her sensei.

Seeing her genin in such a rough state, Anko couldn't even get angry. The anger she felt evaporated into concern, especially when she laid eyes on the pale Yakumo in Satsuki's arms. Looking at her, Satsuki looked down and shook her head, and Anko immediately knew as she felt her anger bubble back up.

But the tense situation was broken when they heard a cane tapping on the edge of the bridge.

"Well, well, well. Looks like the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist' turned out to be a failure." A voice sneered from the mist. Slowly, a small silhouette made its way to the group, and when he arrived, Zabuza let out a growl.

Gato had seen the last part of the battle and to say he was displeased would be an understatement. He had hired Zabuza because of his renown skill, but apparently a women and a couple of girls were enough to stop him.

"The fuck did you say you bastard!" Zabuza roared at him, having his pride stepped on by a scumbag like Gato didn't sit well with him at all.

"You had better apologize to Zabuza-sama or else." Hearing her master be insulted by this pitiful excuse for a human being infuriated Haku to no end, if not for the fact it would leave Zabuza defenseless, she would've lunged at him.

"Heh, big talk from a dead man. Why do you think I decided to come now of all times huh? The lot of you are worn down and injured from your little battle, so I figured it's time to clean up. Get the hell out here!" As he shouted, a large mob of hired mercenaries and thugs started making their way behind him.

Seeing the new threat in front of them, the group tensed up. All of them were injured and if they weren't they were exhausted from the past hour of fighting. The best option now would be to retreat, but they wouldn't get far seeing as there were some ninja mixed into the army that Gato had assembled. They tensed up even more when they heard what Gato said next.

"Alright, well times up. Kill them all! But if you bring me back any of those girls and that women, you'll get a bonus bigger then you can imagine." He said in a lecherous tone, making a shiver run up the spines of the females present.

Before any of them could no anything, Zabuza stood up on his own and took up a defensive stance in front of the small group, to the surprise of everyone.

"You fucking pig. You aren't touching a hair on any of them, espeically not Haku." Zabuza growled out. He may not have been the kindest or purest of people, he was far from it, but there were some things that even he thought was evil. What Gato was saying was one of those things.

"_Damn... My body is still numb from that snake. I can barely move, but I should be able to buy some time for Haku to get out of here._"

"Haku."

Hearing Zabuza speak to her in such a soft tone made her eyes widen, not liking the ominous undertone to his voice.

"Ye-Yes Zabuza-sama?" She timidly said.

"I want you to get out of here right now." Zabuza said in a tone of finality, however it was badly recieved by Haku.

"Wh-What are you saying Zabuza-sama! You want me to abandon you!?"She nearly screamed, her eyes wide at the obscene order from her master.

"Yeah, that's what I'm saying. I may not have been the best person and I don't have many things that I cherish anymore... But I'll let you know that I did cherish you, even if I didn't show it." With that, Zabuza staggered slightly before he rushed towards the army to the shock and horror of the group.

"ZABUZA-SAMA!" Haku screamed, not believing what she was seeing.

"_Heh, looks like this is how I go eh. Not too bad, the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist' protecting a group of girls from a scumbag who hired and then betrayed him. What a twist._"

But before the two opposing sides reached each other, a crescent shaped wave of chakra stuck Gato's army, shredding the men in the front.

"What!?" Was the collective thoughts of the people present, until they heard the footsteps echo out of the now clearing mist.

"Naruto!" Anko shouted, relieved that her student was safe and that he was here with them. Her sentiments were shared with the rest of the group, Satsuki releasing the breath that she held, Haku tensing before relaxing, and Zabuza cracking a small grin.

"Sorry I'm late Anko-sensei, there was another small militia group that tried to attack the town that I had to take care of." He replied, his eyes never leaving the army in front of them.

"Guh, you damned brat! They were supposed to take out the rest of the village!" Gato shouted, enraged that his backup plan was ruined by a child.

"Anko-sensei, could you get Zabuza-san some anti-venom and take a soldier pill. We'll be able to beat them if we join forces, I'm sure of it." Naruto suggested, taking up a protective stance, his Basutāsōdo held in front of him.

"We've got no choice huh, fine, let's do this." Anko said, pulling out a small syringe and tossing it to Zabuza, who injected it into himself while she popped a soldier pill.

"Let's do this thing!" Zabuza roared, being able to slowly feel his limbs again, though they weren't one hundred percent, they would be enough to deal with this filth.

"Ha! Don't get cocky Zabuza, you're probably as slow as a chūnin, take it easy!" Anko taunted Zabuza with a grin, who in turn grinned back.

"LET'S GO!" The three shouted, before they charged the army to the shock of the girls who couldn't help but gawk at the three.

Chaos was the only thing to describe what happened. Anko swiftly stabbed and slashed through the vitals of anyone who got in her way, quickly taking out her targets without them being able to mount a counterattack.

Zabuza hacked and cleaved his way through everyone that stood in front of him, cutting through the army like a hot knife through butter, each swing taking out two to three people unfortunate enough to be caught in his path of dismemberment.

Naruto was similar to Zabuza, cutting though his opponents, but not aiming to kill and instead opting to cut off limbs. Because they didn't die, his opponents were forced to lay in the gore of their allies before they were dealt with by a blow to their heads curiosity of Naruto's foot.

After only a few minutes, Gato's army had been reduced to half, to the horror of the remaining members. Gato in particular started shaking uncontrollably as he tried to run, only to lose his leg from another crescent shaped wave of chakra from Naruto.

"GAHHH!" He screamed, clutching onto the stump that used to be his right leg, the remaining men quickly being dispatched by the three who stood against them.

Now crying pitifully, Gato turned around only to face three demons. One had the aura of a demonic purple snake, the other the aura of a violet oni-like creature, and the final had the aura of a black and crimson reptile like monster.

"PLE-PLEASE DO-DON'T KILL M-ME!" He begged, tears streaming down his face, the terror that he felt unlike anything that he ever felt before.

Before Anko or Zabuza could act, Naruto suddenly made his way towards Gato before lashing out and grabbing the short man by the throat, crushing it slightly.

"GAWHH!" He wheezed out, unable to take much air into his lungs from the grip that this monster had on him.

"You don't know how much I want to kill you, even right now I'm doing everything in my power to stop myself from crushing your throat. But that luxury isn't for me." Naruto whispered, before throwing Gato to the ground, breaking his nose and knocking a few teeth out.

As she said that, a small army appeared at the opposite end of the bridge, lead by Inari who was holding a crossbow.

"Naruto-niichan! We're here to protect the Wave!" He shouted, as the villagers behind him shouted in agreement. But they were soon quieted when they saw the carnage that littered the bridge, some turning green and other losing their lunches at the scene.

Tazuna winced, but he knew it was needed in order to save the Wave, and he also didn't feel anything for the men who tried to take his home from him.

"You seen them Gato, they'll be your judges, jury, and of course executioners. Hope the pain doesn't end too soon." With that statement, Naruto grabbed Gato once more before hurling him to the opposite side of the bridge, breaking a few of his bones from the throw.

"There he is!"

"Kill him!"

"No, make him suffer first!"

The villagers immediately congregated on the man, his screams echoing across the village.

(Time skip - 2 hours later)

After the battle on the bridge and the torture and execution of Gato, Nami no Kuni had finally been freed. Using the information that he gained from Sazu, Naruto had told the villagers of the whereabouts of those who were kidnapped and of Gato's stronghold, to which the villagers promised they would go and take.

While tense at first, the two groups; Team 12 and Zabuza and Haku, made peace with each other. At first things there was no trust given the prior circumstances, but once Haku revealed that she had not killed Yakumo but put her in a suspended sleep, they lost all anger that they had towards her.

When Yakumo woke up, she was promptly glomped by Satsuki and Anko, who were worried sick about her, Satsuki bawling her eyes out telling her not to do something stupid like that again. Naruto also expressed his concern by asking if she needed anything to which she said no, Anko having healed all of them from most of their more debilitating injuries.

Eventually, the time came to leave Nami no Kuni, which was a tearful moment, the group having been hailed as heroes by the villagers for protecting their homeland.

"Well, looks like this is goodbye huh." Zabuza said, his voice strangely sad, the group having grown on him in the past few hours.

"It seems so, what are we going to do now Zabuza-sama?" Haku asked, in a sad tone, their main source of income now gone.

"Don't know Haku, guess we'll just wander the nations again." Zabuza replied, looking off into the distance.

Seeing the two like that caused Team 12 to look at them with pity, a life on the run was difficult. That is until Naruto suggested something outrageous.

"Zabuza-san, Haku-san why not come back with us to Konoha?" Naruto said, everyone freezing once they heard him.

"Wh-What? You're joking aren't you brat?" Zabuza said in a doubtful tone of voice, though there was a small hint of hope in his eyes.

"I'm not joking Zabuza-san, if you willingly come to Konoha with the intent to join, it can offer you amnesty from Kirigakure and a position as ninja. Though you'll probably be on suspension and under surveillance for a while, it's better then being on the run."

At his words, not just Zabuza and Haku were shocked, the rest of Team 12 was stunned as well. Even Anko thought that that plan was ingenious.

"You... You're not pulling my leg or anything right brat?" Zabuza asked in a surprisingly hopeful tone.

"I'm not Zabuza-san, I actually hope that you accept, we still haven't finished out duel you know." Naruto said, shaking his head and driving the final nail in the coffin with his last statement.

"I... I don't know what to say... What do you think Haku? Think it's fine if we join Konoha?" Zabuza turned and asked his younger companion.

"I-I would like to try Zabuza-sama, we've been running for a long time now. It would be nice to settle down somewhere safe." Haku timidly said, still not used to the newly discovered soft side of her master.

"Well if Haku says that she wants to try, I'm willing to try as well." Zabuza finally agreed, extending his hand towards Anko.

"Well now that everything is under the bridge, literally, it can't hurt to try right?" Anko said, meeting Zabuza's hand in a firm handshake.

"Then it's settled, lets head back home." Naruto said, as the group bid farewell to the villagers of the wave, to which they called back out to them.

"Everyone thank you! Thank you for giving us back our lives!" The villages shouted to the group.

"Naruto-niichan! I'll do it! I'll embrace my dreams and become a true hero like you!" Inari shouted at his new older brother figure.

"Well, now that everything is settled, why not give a name to the bridge huh? I think that 'The Great Tazuna Bridge" has a nice ring to it!" Tazuna suggested, which most the his fellow villagers boo'd at.

"Hmm... How about 'The Great Naruto Bridge'!" Inari suggested with a smile, the rest of the village cheering loudly at the fitting name, for the one who had most to do with saving their village.

"My name was better... Haha, 'The Great Naruto Bridge' huh? I think it sounds great!" Tazuna laughed, as Nami no Kuni celebrated the first festival that marked the day that it earned its freedom from a corrupt crime lord thanks to the combined efforts of four Konoha ninja and two missing nin.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Well finally done with the Wave Arc! Haha, tell me what you think guys and gals! Leave me a review and tell me what you think about my story and writing style! Again, if you guys have any questions or want to recommend me an idea or pairing or weapon or something, PM me alright! Till next time, stay awesome! <strong>

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><p><strong>Shōsen Jutsu - Mystical Palm<strong>** Technique**: A-Rank, Ninjutsu; This medical ninjutsu allows the user to speed up the body's natural healing process by sending chakra from their hands into a wound or afflicted body part. This allows the user to heal a patient without the need for medical equipment or surgery, making it very useful on the battlefield. It can be used to treat both external and internal injuries. It requires extremely precise chakra control in order to use.

**Raiton: Jinrai - Lightning Release: Thunderclap**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; Taught to Naruto by Ryuuhei. The user builds up a large amount of Raiton natured chakra in a part of their body, usually the hands or feet, then releases it all at once, resulting in an blinding and deafening flash of light. The effect of which varies depending on the amount of chakra and part of the body used.

**Meiryuuton: Zenrei Kuikorosu – Dark Dragon Release: Whole Soul Devouring**: A-Rank, Ninjutsu; A technique taught to Naruto by one of the Elder Dragons. The user builds up Meiton and Ryuuton natured charka into their hand then grabs onto the head their target. After making contact, the user rips out the soul of their target, severing its connection to its body. Used as an interrogation technique as the user is able to read through the memories of the soul as long as they hold onto it, releasing hold of the soul will cause it to be destroyed as it loses a tether to the mortal plane.

**Suiton: Teppōdama - Water Release: Gunshot**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user kneads and converts chakra in their mouth into to water and fires it. The size, number, power and speed of the water balls are based on how much chakra is used in the jutsu. It can be strengthened by various different means such as gravity and introducing another element.

**Suiton: Mizurappa - Water Release: Wild Water Wave**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user molds chakra in their mouths into water and fires a stream of condensed water at their target. The range, speed, and power is dependent on how much chakra is used. Can be strengthened by various different means such as introducing another element.

**Hyōton: Makyō Hyōshō - Ice Release: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; A jutsu of the Yuki clan, a deadly and powerful technique that traps their target in a dome made of ice mirrors that the user hides in, their image being reflected throughout the other mirrors, the user being able to freely move throughout the other mirrors in the dome. Once ensnared, the target is subjected to whatever means of damage the user inflicts on them be it weapons or jutsu. The mirrors can't be broken or melted without substantial force or heat.

**Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu - Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user focus and molds their chakra to create a dragon made of water using a body of water nearby. The size and power is dependent on how much chakra is used and also by how much water is nearby. Can be strengthened by various means, such as adding another element.

**Sen'eijashu - Hidden Shadow Snake Hands**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; A jutsu used by Orochimaru and his apprentice Anko. Summon snakes out of their arms, they send them out to strike at their targets. The types of snakes summon depend on the user, but are generally extremely poisonous and deadly, ending the life of their target usually in a single bite.


	8. Chapter 7

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys! Just wanted to throw you guys a quick chapter as a little sorry you know for the real late last update. Not too much happening this chapter, so it's a nice little laid back one you know! **Haha, hope you guys don't mind reading something like this! **Again, any suggestions that you wanna throw at me, PM me! Really liking the suggestions that people have been saying! As for pairing, some are asking for harem others are asking for singles, tell me what you think would be more fitting eh! Let's get on with this story eh! Oh, and that review that I posted last chapter, my buddy posted that herself since I never logout of my account, she's still fangirling at the NaruHina ending and wanted it to continue, haha! Anywho, let's a go for real this time!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 7<p>

(Time skip - The day after leaving Nami no Kuni)

After departing from Nami no Kuni, the group of Naruto, Anko, Yakumo, Satsuki, Zabuza, and Haku had a silent and slightly awkward trek back to Konoha. The main source of this stemmed from the events that happened over the past few hours, Team 12 still not trusting the two and vice versa. Soon, the lull of the moment was broken by Anko who decided to ask about the past few years of the new members of their group.

"So... Where have the two of you travelled over the past few years?" Anko asked, trying to dispel the awkward atmosphere.

"We've been here and there, we never really stayed in one place for too long. Didn't know if hunter-nin were snooping around, so we tried to make as little contact with people as possible, only stopping to trade with a few merchants before we left." Zabuza replied, releasing a relieved sigh that someone broke the ice.

"It's just as Zabuza-sama said, we didn't stay in one place for very long at all. In fact, our time in Nami no Kuni was probably the longest we've stayed in one place." Haku chipped in, also glad the Anko had broken the ice.

Soon the group fell into a comfortable conversation, the girls asking the two about their travels and adventures over the past few years. A big shocker for them was that Haku was only a year older then them, which was astonishing considering how strong she was.

(Time skip - A few hours later)

After Anko broke the ice and they finally became comfortable around each other, time flew by quicker then they thought, during their conversation night had fallen forcing them to set up camp for the night.

"Ahh, well that was a fun conversation huh!" Anko cheerfully said, having learned some interesting things about the pair, as she started to prepare the fire.

"Heh, I'll admit, it wasn't so bad. I half expected you brats to keep quiet like the adults talked." Zabuza said, laughing slightly as he proceeded to pitch the tent.

"It was fun, I'm glad that I got to know Anko-san, Yakumo-san, Satsuki-san, and Naruto-san a little more!" Haku happily said, helping her master with pitching the tents.

"Tch, whatever. It's not like your stories were interesting or anything, I was just trying to kill the time." Satsuki said, helping Yakumo with collecting firewood.

"I agree with Haku-san, it was very nice to get to know you and Zabuza-san more!" Yakumo also cheerfully said, piling on the firewood that Satsuki brought her.

While the others were happily chatting with each other, Naruto opted to remain silent as he did during the past few hours. It wasn't that he wasn't interested, but rather he was thinking about his plan when Zabuza and Haku entered the gates. No doubt having an A-class missing-nin from Kiri is going to warrant action, no matter how peaceful they appeared.

After they had finished setting up camp, Naruto had offered to keep watch, which the other accepted gratefully. However instead of waking one of them up to switch shifts with, he stayed up the whole night, letting the others get a full night of sleep.

When morning broke, everyone had realized that none of them remembered ever being woken up to switch shifts with their blonde companion. Rushing out of their tents, they were met with the delicious aroma of something cooking that tantalized their noses. Looking towards the direction of its source, they saw Naruto standing over the fire from last night a pot and pan cooking up breakfast.

Dumbfounded by the sight, they were broken out of their thoughts when their stomachs rumbled, catching the attention of the blonde.

"Oh, good morning everyone. Did you all sleep well? I hope so, breakfast will be ready in a few minutes so please go wash up before you come eat." Like a mother, Naruto ordered the remaining members of his group to get ready for the day before they ate.

Quickly washing up, Zabuza was the first to get done as he sat down on a log that rested near the fire. Figuring that since the rest of the group consisted of females, they'd have a little time to kill before they got back.

"Hey brat, so you alright? You stayed up the whole night without swapping out you know." Zabuza said, trying to start up a conversation with the blonde.

"I'm fine Zabuza-san, one member losing a night of sleep for five others to get fully rested is a fair trade in my opinion." Naruto replied, finishing with frying the strips of bacon and eggs while stirring the breakfast stew that consisted of potatoes, sausage and various other vegetables.

After hearing the blonde's reasoning, Zabuza could only laugh. Not that it was funny, but because it made so much sense.

"Haha, well if you put it that way it does make sense. So tell me, where'd you learn kenjutsu. The that style that you use and that sword... they look so familiar to me yet they don't. Who taught you?" He asked, the question that had been nagging at him since the moment they crossed swords weeks ago.

Turning slightly to face the older man, Naruto just gave him a blank stare before he shrugged, turning back to finish up cooking.

"Sorry Zabuza-san, but that I can't tell you... but the one who taught me was like an older brother to me." Naruto said, to which Zabuza nodded, understanding that he didn't want to be pressed to answer anything else.

"Well when you're ready brat, make sure I'm the first person that you tell alright!"

Moving past the slightly uncomfortable topic, the two moved onto swordsmanship, jutsu, and training. Soon Zabuza had a wide grin on his face and was laughing, patting Naruto on the back as Naruto had a small smile on his. If one were to look at the scene without any prior knowledge of the two, they would have suspected that they held a close bond with each other.

Four people did see the scene; two were bewildered at the odd display of closeness, one just smiled at the display, and the final pouted at the sight.

"Hey! How come you never act that way around me huh!" Anko complained, pouting at Naruto for never showing her the same smile that was on his face at the moment.

Hearing her voice, the two turned around and were greeted with the sight of the rest of their little group back from a lengthy half hour long session of washing up.

"That's because you aren't as great as I am!" Zabuza proudly said, puffing out his chest as he boasted to a now irate Anko.

The tension was broken by soft giggling from Haku as she approached the two, happy for her master.

"I'm very happy for you Zabuza-sama! You've found someone who you can truly connect with!" Haku said innocently not realizing the double entendre of her words.

"Uhh... The way you put it makes it sound really wrong Haku..." Zabuza muttered as Anko smirked while the rest of the group blushed slightly.

Though the atmosphere turned awkward for a brief moment, it was soon broken when everyone started laughing and gather around for a delicious breakfast courtesy of the blonde sitting with them.

Packing up quickly and removing any traces of their overnight stay from the clearing, the group continued on towards Konoha with the light of the rising sun.

(Time skip - 2 hours later)

Finally, with the sun overhead in the cloudless blue sky, the group had finally made it to Konoha. The immense gates a welcome sight after nearly a month of being away. While the Konoha ninja were looking on in fondness, besides a blank faced Naruto. Zabuza and Haku looked on in awe, the two never having truly seen the impressive gates in person.

"How amazing, they're enormous" Haku said, her eyes wide as she stared at the sight in front of her.

"All my life I've never seen them in person. Really dwarfs the stories that your hear from other people." Zabuza said, whistling in appreciation at the sight.

As they neared the gates, the familiar faces of Kotetsu and Izumo came into view.

"Hey, Izumo look!" Kotetsu nudged his partner awake, seeing faces he hadn't seen in nearly a month.

"Huh? Wha? What is it Kotetsu?" Izumo said groggily, his brain still in the process of booting up.

"Looks like Team 12 is back from their mission! Took them a lot longer then I expected though, thought it was just an escort mission."

"No you dolt, it was an escort and protection mission! Didn't you write down their mission details for leaving!?" Izumo snapped, knocking his partner on the head for his memory slip.

Once they got to the gates, the two greeted them but paused when they saw who they were with.

"I-Is that Za-Zabuza Mo-Momochi?!" Kotetsu stuttered out, clearly intimidated by the man in front of him. His partner was also shaken up, the clipboard in his hand shaking along with his body.

Seeing their scared states, Anko quickly defused the situation before things got out of hand.

"Hey, he's with us! We need to get to the Hokage's Tower immediately, so hurry up so we can get a move on!" She order, as the two instantly stiffened up and followed through. However, before they could process Zabuza and Haku, a squad of Anbu surrounded the two.

"Halt, the two of you are under arrest." A boar masked Anbu said, taking a step towards Zabuza and Haku.

But before either side could retaliate, Naruto stepped in between them.

"Anbu-san, I know that you're doing your duty to protect the village but these two are under the protection and are being escorted to the Hokage himself by Team 12. Due to circumstances of our mission, they have decided to join Konoha willingly as a way to gain amnesty from Kirigakure. So please allow us to proceed with our passage." Naruto said in a level tone, but during the exchange, his eyes started to spark an electric blue glow as opposed to his normal navy.

Stiffening slightly from the soul piercing gaze of the boy in front of him, the Anbu relented, signaling the rest of his squad to disperse.

"Whoa, that was impressive Naruto! Staring down an Anbu captain and actually talking back to him, you got some balls brat!" Anko said, whistling slightly in awe at the exchange.

"Hey, thanks for sticking up for us brat. I half expected a fight to break out." Zabuza admitted, patting Naruto on the shoulder as a sign of thanks.

"Umm, thank you for standing up for us Naruto-san. That was very brave of you to do so." Haku said in a bashful tone, a light dusting of pink on her cheeks as she smiled at him. She never noticed that behind her, Yakumo and Satsuki's eyes started twitching slightly.

After settling the tense moment from before, the group headed towards their original goal, ignoring the slightly tense atmosphere around them from the people who knew who they were, specifically Zabuza.

(Scene change - Hokage's Tower)

Eventually, they made it to the top of the tower, the secretary nervous knowing the face of the man in front of her but eventually allowed them inside. Team 12 went inside without problems, though they were on guard, strangely they acted somewhat protective of the two who followed behind them.

In contrast to the cool yet cautious entrance of the four in front of them, Zabuza and Haku were nervous and tense, Haku especially. But most of her anxiousness vanished when Zabuza put a comforting hand on her shoulder and squeezed it gently, reassuring her that everything would be fine.

Finally, they stood in front of Minato who had a squad of Anbu stationed near the windows, earning a nervous glance from the two outsiders.

"Team 12, welcome back from your mission. That certainly took much longer then I anticipated. I imagine that some... complications came up correct?" Minato spoke calmly, though near the end he casted a glance to the two behind them.

"Hai Hokage-sama. The C-Rank mission that was assigned to us about a month ago quickly escalated into a A-Rank due to the influence of various missing-nin and mercenaries." Anko reported, her arms folded behind her back.

Behind her, Yakumo and Satsuki gulped when they saw Minato's eyes widen at the bit of information, obviously expecting the worse lecture of their lives.

"You mean to tell me that you broke common procedure and carried out the mission regardless of the danger that was present?" Minato said, his voice growing colder as he neared the end causing a bead of sweat to drop down the heads of everyone present.

"H-Hai Hokage-sama. But I assure you that it was-" She was cut off by Minato in the middle of explaining her reason for doing so.

"Anko. Mission protocol states that in the event that a mission isn't what was requested, the team or ninja is to immediately return back to the village and blacklist the individual that requested it. You brought 3 _genin_ who haven't had _any_ experience with missions outside of the village on an A-Rank mission that could've cost them their lives. Do you know how irresponsible that is!" Minato nearly shouted at the end, obviously displeased by her actions. Anko could only drop her head in shame, her genin looking on with wide eyes at the exchange.

"What you did endangered the lives of the ones who you're supposed to be helping nurture and grow! What if one or all of them died!? What would you have done?"

By this point Anko was shaking slightly, her hands clenched into fists as Minato's words started cutting her much more deeply then before, having flashbacks to her old Anbu squad that died because of her.

"Honestly, I expected better from you! You should what breaking protocol entails but you went ahead and did it anyway! Even for you tha-" Minato wasn't able to finish his lecture as Naruto stepped forward in front of his team, his usually blank navy eyes replaced with cold electric blue ones.

"That's enough Hokage-sama!"Naruto said, raising his voice at Minato, stunning the occupants in the room from the anger that was held in it.

"While most of what you have said is true, Anko-sensei didn't break protocol on her own. If you had listened to the rest of her report, you would have learned that it wasn't her who decided to do so. I was the one who insisted that we carry on and continue the mission." Naruto said, his eyes narrowed at Minato, angry at the fact that he started lecturing Anko before he knew all the facts about the mission.

"Naruto." Anko softly said, tears starting to lace the corners of her eyes from a combination of Minato's lecturing and Naruto's words in her defense.

"Hokage-sama, it wasn't just Naruto! We all agreed as a team to keep on going!" Satsuki said as she stepped forward next to Naruto, not letting her teammate take all the blame for what happened during the mission.

"Satsuki and Naruto are right Hokage-sama! Anko-sensei told us to turn back and follow protocol but we insisted that we continue with the mission regardless of what would happen!" Yakumo said as she also stood with her team, knowing that Anko wasn't the one to blame.

"You guys..." Seeing her genin standing up for her was the last straw as Anko let a few stray tears fall from her eyes.

"As you can see Hokage-sama, _we_ were the ones who broke protocol. Anko-sensei was simply doing her duties as a sensei and allowing us to carve our own path as ninja as she protects and guides us. If there is anyone who you wish to place blame on, then place it on me, but don't think about placing it on Anko-sensei or my teammates because they aren't the ones responsible for any of this." Naruto said his eyes never losing the fierceness that burned inside of them.

Everyone was stunned by Naruto's vocal defense of his teammates, especially Minato who had never heard his son's voice be more then a deadpan. Finally, after a few tense seconds, Minato sighed.

"Anko, I sincerely apologize for my actions. I should have let you finish your report before I said anything else." Minato said in a solemn tone, disappointed at himself for his actions.

"I-It's fine Hokage-sama, I understand that you were concerned about my genin and about mission protocol." Anko quickly replied, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes, a small smile back on her face.

The tense moment passing, Anko gave her report of what transpired over the course of the mission, from the demon brothers to Gato to the reason as to why Zabuza and Haku were here now; though she did leave out the battles that happened, knowing that Naruto wouldn't appreciate it.

"So Zabuza-san, Haku-san. You want to join Konoha? I'm sorry for being rude, but why?" Minato questioned the two, still skeptical that such a ninja would join out of the blue.

"Hokage-sama, I know that you don't trust me and will probably never fully be able to either. But I don't have any ulterior motives other then to be able to stop running. I've grown tired of running and I honestly just want a place that I can call home. And so I can spar with this blonde brat whenever I want." Zabuza said, telling Minato of his honest reasons for wanting to join, but the last part of his statement made Minato tilt his head in confusion.

"Huh? Do you mean spar with Naruto?" Minato asked, greatly confused at first, but then he became suspicious when Zabuza gained a confused look while Team 12 looked nervous.

"Is there something that you're not telling me?" He asked, or rather demanded, looking at his son.

Sighing, Anko gave her report once again, though this time she didn't leave out the parts about Naruto. To say Minato was shocked was an understatement, his eyes were wide and he wasn't able to believe any of the scenes that Anko described until Zabuza and the rest of the group vouched for him.

Regaining his composure and shelving the questions he had for his son for later, he questioned Zabuza and Haku once more about what they could offer the village. Of course Zabuza offered a wide repertoire of Suiton jutsu as well as his loyalty and services which Haku also offered. Haku also told Minato about her kekkei genkai, although reluctantly, which added to the pile of reasons that they should be allowed to join.

But Minato was shocked once again when Naruto also vouched for the two of them. Telling him that the two would be great assets a allies to have, saying that he would even take responsibility if anything were to happen that involved the two, going so far as to bow to him. Seeing his son risk his own reputation and pride, Minato couldn't disagree.

Finally, Minato agreed, seeing that the pros greatly outweighed the cons of letting the two join.

"Well now that that is all settled, I would like to personally welcome you to Konoha!" Minato said with a smile, as Zabuza grinned while Haku returned the smile.

"Why don't we get all the paperwork out of the way first though. Zabuza-san I assume that you will be using the same name right?" Minato asked, pulling out a series of forms as he questioned the younger man.'

"That's right Hokage-sama, I would like to keep my name if possible." Zabuza replied, as Minato smiled and jotted Zabuza's first and last name down.

"Now then, Haku-chan, what about your name?" He asked once more to a very quiet Haku, to the concern of the people present. As Minato was about to ask if she was alright, Zabuza stepped in.

"Hokage-sama, Haku will keep her first name but her last name will be Momochi." Zabuza said in a stern tone to the absolute shock of everyone present.

"Za-Zabuza-sama! Wha-What are you saying!" Haku frantically asked, though a part of her was hoping that he wasn't joking.

"You heard me Haku, your last name will be the same as mine." He said in a soft tone putting his hand on her head making her blush at the foreign show of affection.

"So I can assume that..." Minato started, a smile on his face knowing what Zabuza was implying.

"Yes you can Hokage-sama. I'll be adopting Haku as my daughter starting today!" He said in a proud tone as Haku's eyes widened to the size of saucers.

"Za-Zabuza-sama..." She said, her eyes never leaving him as he gained an irritated twitch of his eyebrow before he knocked her on the head gently.

"You idiot, didn't you hear what I just said! Don't call me Zabuza-sama anymore, just call me... Just call me... Call me Tou-san or something. Just not Zabuza-sama!" Zabuza said, turning his head away crossing his arms as a light dusting of pink colored his cheeks , Anko snickering at him.

"Oh wow, looks like the big bad 'Demon of the Hidden Mist' is a tsundere!" She jeered, to which Satsuki and Yakumo turned their heads away to stop their impending laughter as Zabuza gained a bit more pink from embarrassment, growling a little.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Haku latched onto Zabuza as tears started to fall down her face as a beautiful smile appeared.

"O-Of course Zabu- I mean To-Tou-san!" Haku exclaimed, the happiness in her heart surpassing anything that she's ever felt.

After things settled down and all the paperwork had been filed away, Minato told the two that they were going to be under suspension and supervision from an Anbu squad for an unknown period of time to which they accepted knowing that it was justified given their backgrounds.

"Now that everything is settled, where will the two of you be staying?" Minato asked, and immediately they froze.

The reason they joined Gato was that they would have gotten paid a large sum on money, having exhausted the last of their funds prior to being hired. In other words, they didn't have the funds to rent out a place to stay.

But the two didn't have to fear as Naruto stepped in and offered them a place in his apartment, to the shock of everyone present.

"They can stay with me Hokage-sama, my apartment has plenty of room and I'm not only any of it." Naruto said, knowing that he did indeed have the space to spare.

"Ar-Are you sure brat? I don't want to intrude or want you to feel obligated to give us a place to stay just because you brought us here you know." Zabuza said, not wanting to be a bigger burden on the person who just gave him a new lease on life.

"Zabu- i mean Tou-san is right Naruto-kun, we don't want to intrude." Haku said blushing slightly, though part of her did want to stay with the blonde who did so much for her and her father. Unknown to her, the two other girls behind her twitched when they heard the -kun part and saw her blush.

"It's no trouble at all you two, my apartment is a decent size; having two bathrooms and three bedrooms. I've taken the smallest of the three and the other two are just collecting dust." Naruto replied, once again winning the two over with his argument.

Minato wanted to object but knowing the inevitable outcome, he opted to keep quiet and smile, though he felt slight envy for the two that would be living with his son just like he used to.

After about an hour, everything was settled and Minato dismissed everyone except his son. Seeing as he was probably going to be questioned he gave Zabuza and Haku a spare key and told them where his apartment was, saying that he would see them later. After bidding farewells with everyone, he faced his father who had a longing look on his face.

"..."

Naruto remained quiet, as the atmosphere started to turn awkward, at least for Minato. The lull of the moment was finally broken when Minato asked why Naruto was suspecting him of since he was asked to stay behind.

"Naruto... Is it true?" Minato asked in a soft tone of voice.

"Is what true Hokage-sama?" Naruto replied, his eyes and voice back to their original states of navy and deadpan.

"The strength that your team, Zabuza-san and Haku-chan witnessed. Are you really that strong?"

"...Why do you need to know Hokage-sama, besides that fact that it would shed some light about myself." Naruto replied, obviously not pleased with the question.

"I need to know Naruto. So please, just answer me yes or no." Minato asked, his eyes pleading Naruto to answer him.

Finally Naruto relented, heaving out an annoyed sigh, he shook his head in the positive, making Minato widen his eyes.

"Then why Naruto... Why hide your strength?" Minato asked, unable to comprehend the reasoning behind his son's decision to put on the facade of being the dead last.

"Because it's much easier that way Hokage-sama. I don't like being the center of attention and even more I have some reasons that I can't tell you." Naruto replied, Minato giving him a small smile.

"Are you going to drop your facade in the village now?" He asked, hoping that his son would, knowing that it would get him more contact with the other ninja and villagers.

"I don't know Hokage-sama, we'll see." With that, Minato nodded knowing that he was probably driving his son's patience with him. Before he left the office, Minato said one more thing.

"I'm glad that you're not hurt Naruto... And welcome home." He said in a soft tone.

Pausing slightly at the door, Naruto replied before he left.

"Thank you Hokage-sama." Naruto replied before he closed the door softly.

(Scene change - Naruto's Apartment)

Arriving at his apartment, Zabuza and Haku were a little puzzled why he would live so far from the village center, but then they noticed that there were no other houses or complexes within at least one hundred meters and there was a training ground directly across road.

From the front, it looked like a fairly well kept building, there was no real damage or decay viable to the eye. A plain gray, it wasn't the most eye catching but it did look nice. Making their way up to the second floor, they noticed that it seemed like there weren't any other occupants of the building besides Naruto, the dust that had covered the top and bottoms of the doors a clear indicator that they haven't been opened in quite some time.

As they made their way to the end of the floor, they saw small gardening and planters boxes hanging on the handrail in front of the door of the apartment that belonged to Naruto. The two were surprised to see that the blonde had a rather serene hobby, seeing that he seemed like the type to not have any interest in such mundane things.

Making their way to the door, they opened it up and the gray from the outside disappeared and was replaced with a clean and calming white. The apartment was like he said, being rather spacious for only one person. Quickly scanning around the room as they entered, they noticed that it was spotless, not seeing anything that was out of place or dirty.

Taking their sandals off and placing them in the shoe storage that rested near the front door, they continued to explore their new place of residence. The living room had a black couch with pillows and black armchair overlooking a television, a black coffee table resting in the center of the room with white coasters on it. In the corner sat a black and white bookshelf filled with various kinds of literature: books, scrolls and magazines. Spread through the room were lamps that matched the walls with white shades covering them, another lamp hanging overhead above the table.

Making their way into the kitchen they saw that it had a countertop that overlooked the living room, giving whoever was in the kitchen a clear view of what went on in the living room. Entering it, they saw that it was relatively simple. A black marble countertop, a sink and disposal unit, a stove and oven unit, a refrigerator, a microwave, a coffeemaker, a dish washer, a garbage can. The cabinet under the sink contained cleaning supplies such as extra dish soap and paper towels. The cabinets above the countertop contained various ingredients in one and snacks or instant meals like ramen in the other. It was pretty standard for what it contained, though it had a window in front of the sink that had a beautiful view of the village another gardening box hanging in front of it filled with various herbs for cooking such a thyme and rosemary.

Leaving the kitchen, they entered the hallway and saw that there were six rooms lining either side of it and one in the back, three on the left side and three on the right. Walking to the three on the right, they discovered that the first door was a storage closet containing extra shampoo, conditioner, detergent, and various other cleaning products. The two after were the bathrooms, which were again very standard; a sink, cabinet, towel rack, and shower being what stocked it though the bathroom of the far right had a tub as well as being slightly larger.

The rooms on the right were the bedrooms, The rooms furthest to the back of the hallway were empty, having a simple set up of a bed, closet, dresser and drawer. The first one closeted to the entrance of the hallway belonged to Naruto. They were nervous at first but then the opened the door to his room.

His room was very plain, the set up from the other rooms being present though they did see that it was smaller then the other two rooms. There were no posters on the wall, nothing that really differentiated it from the other rooms other then a small bookshelf and laundry hamper that sat near the closet.

Closing the door, they made their way to the final door at the end of the hallway and saw that it was a washer and dryer.

Whistling slightly, Zabuza couldn't help but admire his new place of residence, after deciding which room would be his, he eventually took the room furthest from the hallway after coaxing from Haku. Setting his Kubikiribōchō against the wall, he pulled out a storage scroll that contained his belonging and started sorting out and organizing his new room. After he finished sorting his belonging, he grabbed his worn clothes and took them to start washing them.

In contrast to her father, Haku plopped onto her bed and savored the soft feeling of the mattress, her smiling from having a home never leaving her face. Spending a few minutes like this, she eventually got up and began organizing her room as well, but hearing her father begin washing his clothes, she opted to take a shower first. Making her way to the bathroom, she greeted her father with a smile which he returned before going back to his laundry. Entering the bathroom, she opened up the cabinet and pulled out a towel before enjoying her first bath after a few months of having to bathe in rivers and lakes; practically melting when the warm embrace of the water took hold of her. After washing herself, Haku soaked in the tub for nearly half an hour before she got out.

(Time skip - 1 hour later)

After the two had finished what they were doing, Zabuza taking a shower and Haku doing her own laundry, they made their way to the living room to hear the door open and see a familiar head of blonde hair carrying a bag of groceries.

"Ah, Naruto-kun! Welcome home! Err, or excuse the intrusion!" Haku happily greeted but soon meekly apologized, rather ashamed and embarrassed that she acted like this was already her home while Zabuza laughed behind her.

"Hey there brat, that meeting took longer then I expected. Anything serious come up?" Zabuza asked, slightly concerned that the blonde got in trouble for sticking his neck out for them.

"Hello Zabuza-san, Haku-san. No, there was no trouble, Hokage-sama just wanted to discuss a few things with me there is nothing the two of you need to worry about." He replied, taking off his sandals and slipping them into the storage box next to Haku's.

"Well that's good. And again, I have to say thanks brat. You really stuck your neck out for us." Zabuza said, and he and Haku bowed slightly, though they were told to quickly stop bowing.

"You two don't need to bow to me, I only did what I thought was right." Naruto said, making his way towards the kitchen to start on dinner.

"Well now that we'll be living together, why don't we do our best to get along!" Haku chirped happily as Zabuza smiled, seeing his daughter radiate happiness that he's never seen since he picked her up all those years ago.

"I agree, but I'll tell you something right now Naruto." Zabuza said in a serious tone, earning the attention of both Naruto and Haku.

"What is it Zabuza-san?" Naruto said, nodding his head at the serious tone that the man had. As Haku grew nervous, not knowing what was going on.

"If you even think about peeping on Haku, I'll destroy you." He said, his face scary serious.

After saying that, an out of place wind blew, as the two other occupants of the room gained confused looks. That is until Haku turned bright red at what her father was saying.

"TO-TOU-SAN! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!?" She shouted, not believing that he would say something like that so bluntly. But he wasn't paying attention to her as he folded his arms and stared directly into Naruto's eyes.

"We both know that my Haku is a very beautiful girl, probably the _most _beautiful girl. Don't think that just because you gave us a new life and a place to stay that you have free reign to make her yours, it'll be a cold day in hell before I give you permission to date my daughter brat!" Zabuza said with a fatherly fierceness that was like no other, causing Haku to blush even deeper from embarrassment.

"TOU-SAN!" She screamed, hitting him on the head as she flailed her arms, not believing that he could embarrass her like this in front of their new roommate while he continued saying that she was way too young to be thinking about dating and kissing, to which she screamed even more out of indignation before she covered her face and ran to her room, Zabuza panicking and confused, running behind her to figure out why she acted like she did.

Hearing Zabuza pound of the door, asking or rather begging Haku to let him in while told him to go away, Naruto simply turned to the countertop and started preparing dinner, a small smile appearing on his face from the antics of his new roommates.

"Looks like things are going to be a little more lively around here."

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>And that's that! Just a quick little update, you know! Haha, well leave me a review about what you think of my story so far alright! Thanks for reading, til next time, stay awesome!<strong>


	9. Chapter 8

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys, it's me again bringing you a new chapter! Finally got over 50K views on my story, thank you all so much for taking the time to read it! But once again, not much action again this chapter, I wanted to start the exams in the next chapter you know! So hope you all enjoy this hopefully laid back, hopefully funny chapter that's kinda filler. XD Anyways, again! PM me with any suggestions that you guys have alright, I've gotten some really funny and awesome ones and I'd love to hear more! Anywho, let's a go huh!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 8<p>

Night quickly fell after Team 12 with Zabuza and Haku returned to Konoha. After the incident earlier involving Zabuza and Haku, the two were sitting with Naruto in the living having dinner while they watched the news, discussing various things such as Naruto's connection to the Hokage.

After the two learned that Naruto was his son, they questioned him as to why he wasn't staying with family and instead living alone. They got their answer when Naruto told them that he didn't want much to do with that family anymore, saying that it was something personal. The two respecting his privacy, and turning the topic over to what was going to happen in the future.

(Scene change - Uzumaki-Namikaze estate)

After he finished the workload for the day, Minato returned home, strangely lethargic in contrast to his almost tireless normal self. When he returned, we was greeted by the smiling faces of his children and the trademark eye smile of his student, Kakashi.

Taking off his sandals, he was tackled by the red rocket that was his wife, who fussed over him and immediately questioned him as to why he seemed to much more tired then usual, getting curious looks from their children and a concerned one from Kakashi.

"Mina-kun, what's wrong? Did something happen today? Are you feeling alright?" Kushina asked her husband, checking him for any signs of damage or fatigue.

"Tou-san, here sit down. I'll go get you some tea." Mito said, taking her father's hand and leading him to the armchair nearby as she went to fetch a cup of tea.

"Minato-sensei, what's troubling you? I've never seen you like this before. Did something happen today during in the tower to cause you trouble? If so I can personally go and take care of it." Kakashi said, slightly angry that someone might have done something to cause his sensei trouble.

"Tou-san, you can tell us right?" Narumi asked, her eyes looking worriedly at her father.

"Yeah Tou-san, just tell me and I'll go take of them with Kakashi-nii!" Menma declared, getting a head nod from Kakashi.

Returning with a cup of tea, Mito handed it to her father as her family gathered around him to see what was the reason behind his odd behavior. Once they saw him drink his tea then release a sigh, they leaned in.

"Team 12 came back from their mission." Minato said, as looks of confusion quickly plastered the faces of his family and Kakashi. Seeing that they most likely forgotten, he rephrased his previous statement.

"Naruto's team came back from their mission." Once those words left his mouth, he was immediately pounced upon by Kushina, who demanded to know what happened.

"What!? He came back!? Just today!?" Kushina shouted, shaking her husband by the collar of his flak jacket. Eventually, she was pried off by her daughters who also looked like they were going to do the same thing to their father.

"Ye-Yes Kushina. I didn't think that it would take the long to finish a C-Rank mission either but..." Minato trailed off, getting nervous looks from Kushina and his daughters.

"But what tou-san?" Narumi asked, gravely worried that something might have happened to her beloved brother.

"That C-Rank mission turned into an A-Rank." That bombshell caused everyone in the room to freeze as their eyes widened.

"Wh-What did you say sensei...?" Kakashi asked, not believing what he heard was correct. He knew that Anko was gunning to get done with D-Rank missions so that her genin could get more experience, but this. He didn't believe it.

"I'm not joking. They encountered the 'Demon Brothers' as well as Zabuza Momochi, a former member of the 'Seven Ninja Swordsman of the Mist' within the first few hours of departing." At that Kushina couldn't hold herself back any longer, she demanded to know what happened during the mission, what Minato told them, they couldn't believe.

"H-He's li-living wi-with hi-him...?" Kushina managed to stutter out, her eyes wide with fear. Minato had told them that Naruto, her Naruto, fought Zabuza to a standstill and then took on an army of hired ninja and mercenaries and won. Then he told them about what happened earlier today, about Zabuza and Haku joining the village and staying with Naruto.

"Mi-Minato! Ho-How could you let something like that happen!? Yo-You let that monster stay with our baby, without anyone to protect him!" She nearly screamed, her eyes never losing the terrified look that were held in them.

Though Minato managed to calm her down by telling her about the way that Naruto had insisted that they stay with him, to her horror, and the closeness that they seemed to have. As he described the interactions between two, Kushina could see the envy clear on his face when he told her that they seemed like very close friends.

After he finished his tale, Kushina, Mina and Narumi felt envy flood their hearts when they heard that Naruto had practically a new family. However, Narumi and Mito's envy ran much deeper then what Kushina felt. While their mother felt envy that Naruto was living with other people, which they too felt envious about, more of their envy stemmed from the fact that there was a girl their age living with their beloved brother and that thought made a lump of cold ice form in the pits of their stomachs as the fear that she would snatch their older brother for her own made the two extremely nervous and worried.

While the his sisters felt envy, Menma was still in disbelief, unable to wrap his head around the fact that the weak older brother he had always known did something like that, surviving and completing an A-Rank mission not even two months into his career as a ninja. It should've been him who went on the mission, beat Zabuza, fought an army, and saved a nation not him. It infuriated him to no end, his hands clenched into tight fists. He was definitely a much more capable shinobi then him, and yet he was still stuck here doing chores.

Soon the night was filled with the clamoring of Kushina and her daughters as they planned to go and save their son and brother, but they were quickly told not to by Minato who said it wouldn't go well with Naruto. Though reluctant at first, they eventually gave in, not wanting their son and brother to hate them even more then he did now.

The house settled into an eerie calm as the members of the household went back to what they were doing, Kushina and Mito quietly making dinner, Narumi setting the table, Menma watching TV, Kakashi reading his book and Minato showering. Though the energy that they had from earlier had disappeared.

(Time skip - 1 week later)

A week had passed since Team 12 returned to Konoha and the reveal of Zabuza and Haku's new status as citizens of Konoha. At first, as was expected, a majority of the village avoided the two outsiders given the reputation that they had built up; but now they were beginning to be accepted in some parts of the village, namely the section of the village that catered to ninja.

After four days of observation by the Anbu, a mental and physical check-up Minato deemed that the two were fit to be ninja under the service of Konoha. They were surprised by the relatively quick decision, expecting to be under surveillance for at least two weeks and when they asked why he gave them the trust reserved only for trusted ninja Minato simply said that if his son trusted them then he would as well, which they happily accepted thanking Naruto once again.

Once they were given their headbands, Minato had them evaluated by his top jōnin to see where they stood as ninja; though it was mostly to gauge Haku as he knew that Zabuza was at least jōnin level if not Anbu. After they finished their evaluation, Minato happily gave Zabuza the rank of jōnin and Haku the rank of chūnin, the two grateful for their positions.

While they were happy that they gained the trust of their new Kage, they were more happy that they could actually help Naruto with paying rent and paying for supplies even if he insisted that they didn't have to, they wanted to which forced his hand as he relented after they told him of their new positions. Once that was settled, they began their lives as ninja of Konoha.

For Zabuza, he was pretty much avoided by nearly everyone the only ones he ever being seen with were Naruto and his daughter. But that changed one day when Anko invited him to meet with a few of her friends which he reluctantly agreed, after some pressuring from his daughter.

(Flashback - 2 days ago)

An hour before he was going to meet up with Anko and her friends, Zabuza was laying face down on the couch, not looking forward to spending the day with a bunch of chummy leaf ninja while he's the third wheel, just awkwardly being there.

He was dressed in a black sleeveless shirt and matching pants, black and white stripped arm-warmers that went to his elbows and leg-warmers that connected to his sandals that went to his knees, his regular pair of black sandals, his headband was made with a long black cloth and was tied sideways like his old one, the bandages normally worn around his mouth undone and just wrapped around his neck, he topped off his outfit off with the green flak jacket of a Konoha ninja.

As he was moping, he didn't notice Haku until he heard her clear her throat.

Lifting his head and looking at his daughter, Haku winced seeing the empty look in her father's normally cool and calm eyes. From his expression alone, she knew that he wasn't looking forward to what was going to happen in the next few hours. Kneeling down in front of him and the couch, Haku put her hands on his cheeks as she stared into his eyes, her own filled with sadness.

"Tou-san, please don't look like that. I don't like it when you're not the strong person that I know and love. I'll contact Anko-san and cancel the meeting so please don't be like that anymore okay?" Haku said, her sad eyes ever leaving her father's now bewildered ones.

Seeing and hearing the heart wrenching eyes and voice of his daughter, Zabuza immediately snapped himself out of his pitiful state. Putting his hand on top of her head, he gave her a small smile before he sat back up before speaking to her.

"Sorry about that Haku, I was being pathetic. You're old man isn't going to stand down that easily right!" Zabuza said, the empty look in his eyes replaced with the calm flames of determination.

Seeing her father snap out of his depressive state, Haku beamed him a happy smile as he returned it, ruffling her hair gently. Once the moment was over, and they were back to their normal selves, they went to sit at the kitchen countertop as they happily talked about what was happening with the other around the village, stopping once the deadline had appeared.

"Well... I'm off then Haku, wish me luck." Zabuza said after heaving out a sigh as his daughter cheered him on, her words of encouragement sparking the fatherly flame inside of him alive, making him stand up straighter and gain an unshakable aura of confidence; Haku's eyes sparkled at the sight of her father looking so cool and confident. After composing himself, Zabuza walked through the door his head held high.

"Go get them Tou-san!" Haku cheered pumping her fist in the air, as he turned around and gave her a smile before heading to the small teashop that was the meeting place.

(Scene change - Ensou Teahouse)

In the bustling yet calm shop, Anko sitting with her group of friends that she's had since her academy days. Sitting around a large table in a private room in a separate wing of the shop that they reserved she was seated with: Shizune, Kurenai, Yugao, Tsubaki, Kagura, Genma, Hayate, Asuma, Kotetsu, Izumo, and Aoba.

Joking loudly and laughing, the men were talking about things that were somewhat distasteful in the opinion of the ladies present; mostly about women and a certain orange colored book.

"Come'on Hayate! Don't be such a stiff! You gotta at least give it a read once!" Kotetsu said, patting the now pink cheeked man on the back.

"You know you want you, you're not the first 'Pure' that hasn't read Jiraiya-sama's book and you won't be the last. So take your first steps into manhood!" Izumo added, also patting his shoulder.

Watching the other men start to put pressure on _her _Hayate, Yugao decided to remind them about the only one was allowed to do that.

"Hayate-kun, you know what will happen if I find you reading that trash right?" She said in a syrupy sweet voice that send shivers down the spines of the men, the man in question especially.

"Yu-Yugao-chan! You know I don't have any interest in reading those books!" Hayate fiercely denied before he started coughing heavily, his lover and friends quickly checking to see if he was alright.

"I-I'm fine everyone, thank you for your concern. Tsunade-sama still hasn't found a cure but she has lessened the pain greatly." Hayate said with a smile, trying to reassure the group that his condition was better then it was in the past.

Soon, the group fell back into a happy atmosphere, the serious moment melted away as soon as Yugao started feeding Hayate, much to his embarrassment, prompting the women to coo at the two while the men looked away, tears falling from their eyes at their own hopelessness in the battle for love.

But the light and happy atmosphere ended when a staff member told them that there was a man in the front who said that he was to meet with them, turning their heads to Anko they saw that she had a sheepish grin on her face, telling them that she had invited Zabuza to meet and hang out with them. Ignoring the shocked looks on the faces of her friends, Anko told the staff member to let in him.

When he got to the teashop, he was surprised to say the least, it was busier then he expected and it even served sake judging from the smell of it that wafted around. Sighing to himself, he took a step inside and was immediately greeted with tense and nervous stares, which he notice but ignored not concerned with any of them.

Looking around he didn't see a sign of the purple haired woman that had invited him to come, so he figured that he was early much to his distain. Letting out another sigh, he made his way to the counter only to bump into someone, causing them to spill their tea on him.

Kaori Youjou wasn't having the greatest day, she had taken care of multiple genin who had the displeasure of catching Tora, the cat of the Fire Daimyō's wife, who turned them into scratching posts. But above that, she just turned 28 and still had nothing to really show for it. While all her friends had boyfriends and a few were even engaged, she was still living the single life.

She was so immersed in her own sulking that she never noticed the man in front of her until she bumped into him, spilling her tea on him.

"Guh!" Zabuza cried out, his forearm being scaled slightly from the hot tea that was spilt on him.

"Ahh! Oh my, I'm so sorry!" Kaori called out, quickly wiping the spilt tea off with a towel that a staff member handed to her.

After the whole incident was over, the staff bringing a first aid kit for the man, Kaori got a better look at him. Once she did, she froze. The man that she spilt tea on was Zabuza Momochi, 'The Demon of the Hidden Mist'. Unable to form a coherent sentence, she just stuttered when he locked gazes with her.

"Uhh... You alright?" Zabuza said, sweat dropping at the terrified woman in front of him. While she continued to stutter he noticed that she had scalded herself a little bit on her hand, reaching out he grabbed her wrist as she stopped stuttering and froze.

"_What do I do!? WHAT DO I DO!? HE'S GOING TO KILL ME!_" Kaori screamed in her head, she had just spilt hot tea on a person who was a master of 'Silent Killing'. She knew that she was dead, the other customers and staff members could only watch in silence, expecting the worst. However their imaginations of a bloody murder vanished when Zabuza turned her hand over and started applying some ointment to help with her burn.

"Wh-What?" Kaori could only ask, dumbfounded by what just happened. He didn't rip her hand off or threaten to kill her, he actually put burn ointment on her instead.

"There, that should do it. You should be alright now, I didn't notice any other places that got scalded." Zabuza said finishing tending to the woman.

Silence. The once bustling and lively shop immediately stopped, everyone trying to process what just happened. The former Kiri-nin and missing-nin, the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist' Zabuza Momochi, just tended to a beautiful lady that had just spilt tea hot tea on him like it was nothing.

Snapping out of her stupor, Kaori could only look at him, never noticing that there was a slight fluttery feeling in her chest when he looked at her with a little bit of concern in his eyes.

"Uhh, did I grab your wrist too hard? Sorry about that, I'm not really used to the whole taking care of people thing." He said, clearly embarrassed from the way everyone was gawking at him. Finally, Kaori managed to find her voice after a few seconds of awkwardness.

"U-Uh N-No, N-Not at all! I-I'm just a little surprised is all. Yo-You're a lot more different then what the rumors say you are." Kaori said, a little bit of pink invading her cheeks.

After hearing her say that, Zabuza could only laugh. The act causing some people to drop their tea. It wasn't a bloodthirsty laugh but a humorous one, that was also quite charming as some of the women were blushing slightly after hearing it.

"Don't worry about it, I get that a lot nowadays." Zabuza said, brushing off the comment. Offering her his hand, he helped her up then kneeled back down to pick up the broken pieces of the cup, putting them into the towel from earlier. Finishing cleaning up the small spill, he handed the towel and shards to a waitress who flushed a little when he gave her an easy-going smile before taking it into the kitchen.

Finished with the incident, Zabuza bid farewell to Kaori before making his way to the counter and ordering himself a cup of tea.

Kaori could only stare at his retreating back before she smiled and headed back to her shift at the hospital, the man known as Zabuza Momochi never leaving her mind for the rest of the day.

Getting his tea from the same waitress from earlier, he blew on it slightly before taking a sip and smiling slightly.

"It's good." Was all he said before indulging himself more with the tea that he ordered, the waitress blushing again before she quickly excused herself.

Finishing his tea, he put his cup down before asking the manager if Anko was present in the shop to which he said yes but questioned him as to what his business was with them. Once he told the man that she had invited him to tea he nodded before asking him to follow as he lead him to a separate wing of the shop.

Once they reached a door that that laughs could be heard behind, Zabuza winced knowing that once they saw him it'd instantly turn as quiet as a graveyard. His premonition was correct when it did instantly turn as quiet as a graveyard.

"Uhh... Yo?" Zabuza said lamely raising his hand up to greet the group in an attempt to break the ice and lighten the mood, which failed to do either as they didn't respond, that is until Anko did.

"Hey! About time you got here! I thought you chickened out!" Anko said, obviously trying to rile up Zabuza which worked.

"Oi! You calling me chicken!?" Zabuza retorted his brow twitching, but realizing what he did he quickly composed himself as Anko gestured him to sit beside her.

The light atmosphere from before didn't return as the other members of the group just stared at Zabuza for a few minutes before quietly conversing with each other, ignoring the fact that Zabuza had just joined them. He sighed as he knew this would happen. After 15 minutes of being ignored, he finally had enough of the situation as he stood up to excuse himself but was immediately stopped when Anko grabbed his wrist.

Anko couldn't believe what she was seeing, even after he got approval from the Hokage himself, they still didn't trust him. She knew that at first that would have been acceptable but it had been days since he was accepted into their ranks, they should trust a person that their Kage trusted.

"Are you guys idiots!" She suddenly shouted, stunning the other occupants of the room.

"I get that you guys don't trust him or like him but to just flat out ignore him? That's not something that I expected you guys to do, I expected a few minutes of awkward silence followed by someone offering him something to drink then starting a conversation! Not for you idiots to just pretend like he isn't here!" Anko said, making the eyes of her friends widen not believing that they were being lectured by her of all people. She was about to continue, but was stopped when Zabuza pulled his wrist free from her grip.

"Oi Mitarashi, don't make em' do something they don't want to do. They don't trust me, and I'm fine with that. I got other people who trust me including Hokage-sama, Haku, and Naruto; having other people not trust me isn't something I really care about." He said, making his way to the door as the others looked at him, their eyes wide. Stopping at the door he addressed them once more before leaving.

"Like I said, I'm fine with you not trusting me. My daughter told me that I should try and find people that I could trust with my back but figures that that ain't happening huh. Well whatever, but just to reassure you right now, if we work together I've got your back covered whether you want me to or not. I owe Naruto that much for sticking his neck out for me when Hokage-sama questioned my loyalty, I owe Haku that much for sticking with me for as long as she did and always worrying for my sake, and I owe Hokage-sama that much for accepting me and my daughter into this village and allowing us to become ninja. Thanks for the invite Mitarashi, I'll see you around." With that Zabuza left, closing the door softly behind him.

Once the door closed, silence prevailed over the room, everyone digesting the words that Zabuza had left them. After a few moments Anko stood up her eyes foreshadowed by her hair.

"You guys... I... I just can't believe you." Anko whispered, before she made her way to the door.

"A-Anko-chan where are you going?!" Kurenai asked, still not believing that her normally exuberant best friend was actually upset to this extent.

"I'm going to find Zabuza and apologize for what happened." She said as she exited the room, leaving everyone else who looked down at the table.

"...She's really upset... Anko's really upset..." Kurenai said, still in disbelief at the fact that her best friend got upset over what happened.

"We... Were we wrong...?" Tsubaki said, questioning if their choice of action was the right one.

"I don't know Tsubaki, I don't feel like I can trust him... You know that he killed all of the graduating of his academy without him even being a ninja in the first place. Do you think you can trust someone who did something like that?" Asuma said, taking a long gulp of sake.

The rest of the group remained quiet, not having any other words to say as the happy and light atmosphere from earlier destroyed, in its place a heavy and solemn one.

(Scene change - A few blocks from Ensou Teahouse)

After he left the room, he bid farewell to the manager and staff members of the teahouse, smiling at them which stunned them, but they quickly recovered and returned the gesture.

The waitress from before introduced herself as Okyō Kyoushou and asked if he was going to return, giving him a coupon for half-off tea and a meal which Zabuza gratefully accepted, telling her that he would return some other time.

As he rounded the corner, intent on grabbing something light to eat he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Making a fist, he was about to smash his elbow into the person when he stopped himself, knowing that he'd probably be the one to be arrested. Those thoughts left when he turned around and saw a familiar head of purple hair.

"What're you doing here Mitarashi? Shouldn't you still be with your friends?" He asked, confused as to why she left her friends to stop him but then a thought came to his head as he gave her a smirk.

"Don't tell me you were worried about me?" He said with an amused tone, his eyes also shining with an amused glint.

Hearing him say that, Anko immediately turned red, with both embarrassment and anger.

"Sh-Shut up you idiot! I-It's not like I was worried about you or anything moron! It's just that no one should have had what happened back there happen to them, even an idiot like you!" She said, the redness never leaving her face. The opposite happened when Zabuza started laughing hysterically, clutching at his sides in order to ease the pain that he felt.

"HAHA! O-OH KAMI THAT'S RICH! TH-THAT WAS SUCH A TSUNDERE LINE IT'S NOT EVEN FUNNY!" He laughed, tears began flowing from his eyes, not believing that the 'Snake Mistress of Konoha' was a tsundere.

"O-OH KAMI! MY SIDES! MY SIDES, THEY BURN!" He cried out, now on his knees one hand on the ground supporting him the other wrapped around his stomach trying to ease the pain, tears still falling as he continued to laugh.

"..." Anko's face was crimson now, her cheeks puffed into an angry pout. Finally having had enough of seeing Zabuza make fun of her she launched herself at him, getting him into a headlock.

"JUST DIE ALREADY!" She screamed, as he just started laughing harder at her futile attempt to make him submit.

The antics of the two eventually drew a large crowd, at first they were terrified at the scene but then they started smiling and laughing themselves. After some time even the group of Anbu who came to check out the disturbance couldn't help but smirk and contain the laughter the welled up inside of them, never seeing imagining seeing Anko and the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist' act like two lovers.

Eventually, the two calmed down Zabuza sitting with his legs outstretched wiping the remaining tears away while Anko still had him in a headlock. Finally collecting himself, he turned his head towards Anko, who still was red in the face, as she snarled at him. But she wasn't prepared when Zabuza closed his eyes and gave her a wide smile, making her eyes go wide and her heart flutter.

"Thanks Mitarashi, that really cheered me up!" He said as he pulled Anko's arms off his neck as he stood up, helping her up as well. Still slightly stunned, she was broken out of her state when she heard applause explode around her.

"You go girl! Great job cheering your boyfriend up!"

"Kyah! You two are so cute, it must be great to be young and in love!"

"She's a tsundere?! She's a keeper brother!"

"That line was perfect! She's the one! Don't ever let her go!"

Immediately the two froze when the crowd started cheering them on, shouting about how they were a couple and about how in love they were.

Hearing what they were saying about them, the two immediately turned crimson before they took off, leaving a cheering crowd and amused Anbu squad behind.

(Scene change - A few blocks from the 'Incident')

After their escape, Zabuza and Anko found themselves in the other food district, however both of them were still embarrassed from earlier. The awkward silence that prevailed was broken when both of their stomachs growled. They both looked at each other before they started laughing.

"Haha, want to grab something to eat Momochi?" Anko said, a smile appearing on her face.

"Sure why not Mi-TSUN-rashi!" Zabuza said in an amused tone, barely able to contain the laughter that returned as Anko turned red once more, her eye twitching.

But soon the two laughed once more and entered a small yakitori stand where they learned more about each other. Anko learning that Zabuza loved spicy food and fresh fish, disliked sweets and hated fresh vegetables. Zabuza learning that Anko loved sweet bean soup, dango and practically anything sweet, disliked fish, and hated spicy food.

As they happily chatted with one another, they never noticed the knowing looks that the other patrons and cook gave them. After a while they were soon joined by Ibiki who got instantly along great with Zabuza, forging a 'bond of manliness' as they called it, that made Anko laugh. The three enjoyed each other's company until the shop closed, agreeing with the others that it would be their new spot to hang out.

(Flash back - End)

After that, Zabuza became close friends with Anko and Ibiki who introduced him to Inoichi, Tonbo, Shimon, and the other members of the T&I Division who at first were cautious of him but quickly turned around when Ibiki told them that he was a great guy.

Due to the events that happened that day, many mistook or rather assumed that Zabuza and Anko were a couple, which infuriated and embarrassed the two to no end. Haku especially was affected by the rumors.

Zabuza had seen the most terrifying expression he had ever witnessed when she told him that no woman was allowed to have her father unless she accepted them first, wearing a yandere-like smile as she unconsciously pulled out a handful of senbon making him shiver in fear.

As for Haku, at first she was also treated similar to how Zabuza was treated, but once she started to get to know the villagers who she bought groceries from, her reputation as a beautiful and kind girl quickly spread though the village, earning her a fan club much to her chagrin. Luckily for her, Zabuza scared off any boy who even stared in her direction, his oni-like aura springing out whenever he caught some boy staring at his daughter.

Zabuza returned to that teashop much to the joy of the staff there, having grown to like the intimidating yet deceptively kind man. Okyō even had asked him if he was single, which he told her yes, making her eyes sparkle before she skipped off in a happier mood then before much to his confusion. Eventually he started doing missions with various people as well as being solo, making him a happier man as he was allowed the freedom that he once had unlimited access to once more.

Haku eventually was accepted to the Medical Corps. and immediately became a vital member her knowledge of the human body and numerous herbs making her a valuable member. Adding to that was her kind nature, making all the patients that were admitted feel welcomed and safe. That is until a young man tried hitting on her resulting in him being temporarily paralyzed from the neck down while she wore her smile in an ominous way, that was where the unspoken rule of never hitting on her was created.

For the two, life definitely was much more enjoyable then it was in the past, the two smiling much more and laughing much more then they ever had before.

(Time skip - 2 weeks later)

As time flew by, things mostly remained the same. Zabuza was apologized to by the same group of people that Anko had tried to introduce to him, which he brushed off saying that they were only doing what ninja did. Haku's fan club grew in size, and in turn Zabuza's over protectiveness grew as well; though Zabuza's popularity with some of the female population also triggered Haku's over protectiveness as she would smile chillingly at any woman caught staring and blushing at her father.

For Team 12, not much had changed. Minato had ordered that they not be allowed to go on any missions for at least 2 weeks which they accepted opting to train more. Anko told them that there would be no team training but would be a meeting a week until the chūnin exams and to take it easy, telling them that she would help them train if they asked for it.

Yakumo trained with Anko and Kurenai on her taijutsu, ninjutsu and genjutsu. Kurenai was shocked when Yakumo came back a much stronger girl then she was before, showing strength that she never had imagined would come from the once frail girl.

Pride swelled in the hearts of both women when they saw the growth that their student was showing, the frail girl of the past replaced with a strong young lady who strived to be stronger then the both of them.

Satsuki trained with her mother, father and older brother in controlling and using her sharingan, which once they found out about they promptly celebrated. At first she was confident that she was able to control it without trouble, but was proven wrong when she nearly fainted from draining so much charka.

While her parents and older brother were happy for her, her twin glared at her much more harshly then before obliviously jealous and angry that she had awakened her sharingan before he did.

As for Naruto, since he wasn't allowed on missions he never went into the village, as Haku offered to do the shopping, which helped him avoid all contact with his family. Instead he trained following Ryuuhei's instructions as well as sparring with Zabuza, much to the older man's pleasure.

Zabuza sparred with him once a week and every time they sparred, he was blow away by the growth that Naruto displayed not believing that anyone could grow so much in such little time. He also found out that using a great sword wasn't the only weapon that Naruto excelled at using, stunning him once he saw the extensive range of weaponry proficiency that he had.

However, they were blown away with what Anko had to tell them at the team meeting that was scheduled for today.

(Scene change - Team 12 Training ground)

"Hey there brats! How have you all been!" Anko cheerfully said, getting smiles in response from her genin, even Naruto had a small smile. Seeing the smiling faces of them, Anko gave a grin in response.

"Well, these past 3 weeks have been pretty boring huh? Just training without doing any missions, but hey! I've got something important to tell you all." Once Anko said that, she straightened her back and stared at them with serious eyes. In response, they became serious as well their smiles thinning into lines as they returned her serious gaze.

"After all I've seen you do, even though you haven't even been genin for half a year, I've decided to ask you all if you want to enter the chūnin exams this year." Anko said, her gaze never losing the serious look in them.

"Wh-What did you say Anko-sensei?" Yakumo said, her eyes wide. Usually genin were supposed to have at least a year of experience before they were eligible to enter the exams, but their sensei was telling them that they could enter if they wanted?

"I said if you guys think you're ready and you're prepared to give it your all, I'll allow you to enter this year's chūnin exams." Anko repeated once more.

"Se-Sensei, I... I want to enter!" Satsuki said, her eyes burning with determination.

"I agree Anko-sensei, I want to enter as well!" Yakumo agreed, her eyes burning with the same determination as her best friend.

The girls were rearing to go but the lone male of the group remained silent, prompting his teammates to look at him for his answer.

"...Let's enter..." Was his answer, his eyes gaining a determined look as well.

Expecting their sensei to give them a grin and celebrate, they were shocked when her serious look remained.

"You all know that the chūnin exams are dangerous right? You're allowed to kill, maim, do anything to your opponent in order to win. I don't want you all to charge head first without knowing that you have the potential to die and for it to be allowed. Knowing that do you still want to enter?" Anko replied, her eyes never once losing the serious look in them.

Yakumo and Satsuki looked at their feet, mulling over their hasty decision. Their flames were dampened a bit but they were revived when Naruto spoke out his thoughts.

"Don't worry Anko-sensei, if we enter, I'll do everything in my power to protect my teammates." He said, his eyes gaining an even more confident look in them making the others widen their eyes slightly.

"Even knowing that it's dangerous, as long as my team is there to back me up I know that we'll pass!" Satsuki said, standing up straight as she regained her determined look.

"With Satsuki and Naruto standing beside me, I know that we'll overcome anything that stands in our way!" Yakumo said with her eyes also gaining her determination back.

Seeing her genin have not just confidence in themselves but confidence in each other, Anko finally lost her serious look and in its place a proud smile shone brightly.

"That's the right answer you guys. Alone, I know that all of you could get far into the exams but together. Well, let's just say I feel sorry for the poor suckers that are going to cross paths with you." Anko said laughing lightly as her genin also laughed along.

After everything was settled, Anko handed her students the paperwork which they quickly filled out and returned to her. Bidding farewell to them, she quickly made her way to the Hokage's tower where Minato had called a meeting with all the sensei of the year's genin to see who was going to enter the exams this year.

(Scene change - Hokage's tower)

In the meeting room adjacent to his main office, Minato was seated in front of the jōnin in charge of this year's crop of genin. He knew that some of them who were going to enter their genin had the usual year amount of experience, but he also knew that some wanted to enter their genin and didn't have that usual requirement. For those teams, he wanted a very good explanation as to why they should be able to enter when they lacked the necessary experience.

As they were about to begin, the door opened up and Anko enter the room a little winded from her sprint to the tower. Sweat dropping at her tardiness, being even later then Kakashi much to his chagrin, she apologized before taking a place next to Kurenai.

"Now that everyone's here, let's begin shall we!" Minato said, not hiding his excitement at seeing who was going to enter and who was going to drop out.

After a few of the people he expected to enter, did, he nodded giving them his approval as they met the requirements. A few of the jōnin decided not to enter, feeling that their teams didn't meet the standards that the exam called for. But finally, he got to the jōnin of this year's group of genin.

"Minato-sensei, I want to enter Team 7 into this year's exams." Kakashi said, making Minato sigh as he knew that this would happen.

"I understand Kakashi, but could you give me a reasoning as to why I should enter them? Just because they're my children doesn't mean that they're ready you know." Said, knowing that his children probably pestered Kakashi endlessly for him to enter them.

"I understand Minato-sensei, but I honestly do believe that they are ready. All of them have Kage-level amounts of chakra, are already proficient in tai and ninjutsu, and have completed 31 D-Rank missions and 3 C-Rank missions. They're teamwork is rusty, but they have improved greatly. Not to mention that they're strong individually. Because of that they show the potential to become chūnin and pass the exam." Kakashi reported, a slightly condescending tone seeping into his voice as he eyed the other jōnin.

"Hmm... I'll trust your judgment on this Kakashi, I'll allow them to enter the exams but have you told them of the dangers of it yet?" At that question, Kakashi nervously shook his head in the negative making Minato sigh.

When he asked everyone else, they also repeated the act. But Minato and everyone else were surprised when Anko said that she told them and even knowing the dangers they agreed to enter. Snapping out of his stupor, Minato motioned the jōnin to continue their nominations.

"Hokage-sama, Team 8 is ready to enter. They specialize in hunting and tracking but even past that they show promise and potential to pass the exams. Shino and Kiba have some difficulties getting along and Hinata doesn't really talk to them, so their teamwork suffers as a result. But when pushed, they can become an efficient team and have shown that to me. They've completed 33 D-Rank missions and 2 C-Rank, while they lack experience they make up for it in determination." At her concise report Minato smiled and nodded, making Kurenai give Kakashi a smug smile making the latter's eye twitch.

"Alright, if you believe that they can come together then I'll allow them but do tell them about the dangers alright?" At that she nodded and Guy stepped forward.

"YOSH! Hokage-sama, my youthful genin are more then ready to let their youth shine this year in the exam!" Guy nearly shouted, making Minato laugh wryly.

"Yes, you're genin have been together for about a year and a half, so they do meet the requirements Guy. They're free to enter." Minato said getting a nice guy pose from Guy in response.

"Hokage-sama, Team 10 is ready. Though they really are slackers, they do have the potential as the next Ino-Shika-Cho, and I've seen it on a few occasions. They've still got a long way to go, I have to bride them in order for them to do anything really, but when push comes to shove, they do get things done. Shikamaru and Choji share a close bond though Ino hates working with them. But underneath all of that, they're more then capable of passing. They've finished 35 D-Rank missions and 2 C-Rank, so they've got some experience handling the harder stuff." Asuma reported, taking a breath after his report.

Minato nodded, but then agreed. He knew that they would have some trouble but from what he has seen in the reports, Shikamaru would be able to get them out of most situations given his intellect.

"Alright Asuma, I'll let them enter. Shikamaru-kun should be able to keep them safe given his intelligence and with them all working together they should be safe." Minato said smiling as Asuma gave him a grin in response.

"Alright Hokage-sama, I'm not going to lie here but I really don't think that Team 11 is ready for the exams, but I want them to enter to see how far behind they really are. They're the most unbalanced team that I've seen, it's almost unfathomable. Sasuke has, if it's even possible, gotten even worse when it comes to interacting with his teammates. After his sister unlocked her sharingan, he's been doing everything to try and force his awake. Sakura hasn't lost her fan girl attitude towards Sasuke and because of that she hasn't really become any stronger then before, if anything she's become a little but weaker not training in order to watch and cheer him on. Sai on the other hand still gives off the strange vibe from before, I don't know what's going on in his head and it's making me an Orochimaru-sama cautious. They've done 30 D-Rank missions and 1 C-Rank, but even after all of that, they've still not improved their teamwork." Genma reported, sighing heavily as some of the other jōnin gave him pitying looks.

"I understand Genma, while I would probably not allow them to enter they do need to know that working alone doesn't make you a powerful ninja. I'll allow them to enter on the condition that you tell them about the dangers about what happens. If even one of them backs out then they all aren't going to be able to enter." Minato said as Genma nodded in return.

Finally, everyone's attention was on Anko. After the incident that happened a few weeks ago, she had stopped treating them as loving and familiar as she used to. While she did smile and chat with them, it wasn't with the same amount of energy that she used to show them. Now they were curious about her response to the question at hand.

"Hokage-sama, I've told my team about the risks and dangers that the exams pose. Even after hearing them they still agreed as a team that they would enter. At first, Yakumo and Satsuki lost the determination that they had, but once Naruto said that he would protect them no matter what they regained it and it was much stronger then before as well. They've completed 41 D-Rank missions and 1 A-Rank mission, and even after all that they're still humble and not cocky at all. They're teamwork is out of this world and individually they're strong enough to take down chūnin level opponents. I know that they're ready for the exam, and that they'll pass it without any trouble at all." Anko reported, confidence and pride brimming from her person as everyone looked on in awe.

They have never seen Anko put such confidence in another person let alone three, the confidence and way that she spoke of her genin led no room for doubt. They would be entering and they would go far and Minato felt that as well.

"Alright Anko, I'll allow them to enter. If what you said is true, then I have no doubts that they will go far in this year's exam." Minato said, his voice held a little bit of pride after hearing what his son said to help is teammates regain their confidence.

After everything was settled and all the teams that were going to enter handed in their forms, Minato dismissed everyone.

As she was walking out, Anko was stopped by Kurenai who was with Asuma and Genma.

"Anko-chan, do you want to go grab a bite with us?" Kurenai asked, hopeful that she would agree to go with them. Behind, Genma and Asuma held the same hope that she did, but it was quickly gone once they heard her response.

"Nah, I'm fine thanks though Kurenai! I'm meeting Momochi and the guys, so I can't. Maybe next time though!" She said, as she made her way to her new usual meeting spot, as the three behind her looked on with sad eyes, Kurenai especially.

"Come'on, let's go Kurenai." Asuma said putting a hand on her shoulder as they left the tower.

(Time skip - A few days later)

The day had finally come, making his way to the building that the exams were held, Naruto heard the sounds of a dispute happening and quickly made his way over to investigate.

When he arrived, he saw a boy around his age dressing in a black bodysuit, wearing a black hood with pointed cat-ear like appendages that had a Suna headband attached to it, strange objected wrapped in bandages on his back, with purple paint on his face. He was holding a boy younger then the both of them by the scruff of his neck as two other kids watched on in horror and fear.

"Watch where you're going you little brat!" The teen shouted at the boy being held up started shaking.

"Oh, you gonna cry now? Tsk, who knew that there were such brats in this village. I'll really make you cry!" The teen said, cocking his fist back as the younger boy closed his eyes.

But before he could do anything, Naruto had appeared and gripped his wrist, hard.

"Guh! Wh-What the hell!?" The teen said, dropping the boy and focusing his attention on the blonde in front of him.

Before anyone could say anything, the young boy and the two other kids behind the older boys immediately brightened up.

"Menma-niichan!" They shouted, but it fell on deaf ears when the blonde that they thought was their honorary nii-chan ignored them.

"What's a Suna-nin doing picking on a little kid, if you want a fight pick on someone your own size you sorry waste of space." Naruto said in a chilling tone as he glared at the older boy, making the teen flinch before he glared back.

As things were about to heat up, a voice broke through the tense atmosphere that had been created.

"Konohamaru!" A series of voices called out, the group turning around and seeing Menma, Kiba and a few other boys running towards them, but next to them was a scowling Sasuke. After they had heard Konohamaru cry out, they immediately ran to the source, even Sasuke followed curious as to what was happening. But all three froze when they locked eyes with blank navy ones.

Silence, that was what prevailed over the area, it even affect the teen as a bead of sweat dropped down his head, the odds not in his favor. But that vanished once the blonde holding his wrist let go.

"I don't have time to waste with you. Get out of my sight." He said in the same tone as before. Before the teen could retort, the blonde cut him off.

"And you two, in the tree, I'm guessing that you're his teammates. You have better get out of my sight as well." At that the teen froze, his eyes widening as a teen with blonde hair tied into 4 pigtails holding a large metal fan came out and a boy with red hair and a gourd appeared in a swirl of sand.

"Ga-Gaara!" The teen stuttered out, making everyone focus attention on the red head, seemingly the cause of the teen's fear.

" Kankuro you're a disgrace to our village, if you do that again, I'll kill you." The red head said in a blood thirsty voice making everyone, minus Naruto, flinch. Turning to Naruto he addressed him.

"My apologies. I am Gaara of the Sand. What is your name?" He asked in a emotionless tone.

"Naruto." Was all that he got in response, making the red head crack a small maniacal smile.

"Naruto... Mother will enjoy it when I spill your blood." He said in a crazed tone before he started walking away with the two. But was stopped when Sasuke called out to him.

"Hey! I'm Sasuke Uchiha, of the Uchiha clan!" He shouted, smirking knowing that the group would be in awe of his status.

"I have no interest in any of you other then him." Gaara said, pointing at Naruto, anger seeping into the faces of the other boys. Soon they were out of sight leaving the Konoha ninja alone.

Before anyone could talk, Konohamaru instantly latched onto Menma crying about how scary the situation was as the older boy tried to calm him down. He was about to say something else but stopped when he saw his older brother start to leave.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going loser!" He shouted scaring the kids, know known as Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi.

However his anger only increased when his brother ignored him, prompting him to run up and grab his shoulder, forcibly turning him around.

"Don't think that you're some kind of hero just because you did something like that. People like you shouldn't get their hopes up." Menma growled out as he glared at his older brother, his group of friends soon joined him.

"Yeah dead last, don't get ahead of yourself. You're lucky that we got here or else you would've been put into the ground!" Kiba barked out, also glaring at the older blonde.

While things began to get tense, they got even more tense when Menma reached out to grab his older brother's collar but was stopped and later shocked at what happened next.

Naruto grabbed Menma's wrist and twisted it, making him wince in pain. But before he could do anything, he yanked his wrist to the side, making Menma lose his balance in turn Naruto forced him onto the ground his arm locked behind his back.

Shocked at what just happened, Kiba was about to engage the older blonde for attacking his best friend when a chilling voice made him freeze.

"If you don't want to lose conciseness then you'll stay there like a good dog." Naruto said, his voice sending shivers down the spines of everyone present. After, he applied more pressure onto Menma's arm making the younger blonde wince and grunt in pain.

"I've had just about enough of your attitude Menma. How long are you planning to keep this up? Until you're a chūnin? Jōnin? Anbu? Because if you keep acting like you're superior to everyone else, you're going to end up having your squad dead because of you." At that, Menma's eyes went wide.

"I know, you hate me, you detest me, _despise_ me. But let me tell you a little secret Menma, I. Don't. Care." At those words Menma and the rest of the people watching could only gape, their mouths trying to form words but none coming out.

"You can hate me all you want, but in the end it'll get you nowhere. And let me tell you something _otouto_, if I _ever_ catch wind that you caused trouble because of your attitude, I'll make sure that it never happens again. Do you understand?" When Menma didn't respond, Naruto tightened the lock on his arm making him cry out a little in pain.

"Do. You. Understand." Naruto said, his voice colder then ice. After that, Menma nodded his head submissively.

Letting of his arm, Naruto stood up and faced Kiba and the others who flinched and shrunk in fear when they saw his cold eyes.

"Let me tell you all something, especially you and your mutt Menma, the attitudes that you have now _will _get someone killed. I don't care how strong, smart, or brave you are; you will get someone killed if you keep acting that way. You had better fix that problem yourselves or I'll fix it for you." Finishing his lecture/threat, Naruto continued towards the exam center leaving behind a frightened group of shinobi.

(Scene change - Chūnin exam building)

Standing in front of the building that would become the place where their hopes for the promotion to chūnin were held, Team 12 stood together, their backs straight and their eyes filled with determination. Exchanging glances with each other, they nodded as they mentally agreed with each other, entering the building together with the same thought running though their minds.

"_LET'S DO THIS!"_

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>And that's a wrap guys! Tell me what you think alright! Leave me a review and PM me if you have an idea alright! Thanks for reading and stay awesome alright guys!<strong>


	10. Chapter 9

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**And boom! First part of the **Chūnin Exam Arc** is done! Haha, it's me again guys! Thanks for taking the time to read this chapter! Kinda wasn't feeling it when writing it so it might not be good. I'm sorry! But I do hope that you enjoy reading this chapter! PM me if you want to suggest something because you know I love hearing your suggestions! Now, let's a go read! XD**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 9<p>

After they entered the building together, Team 12 immediately saw a blockade made up of other genin. Approaching the group, they saw two chūnin that were blocking a door, preventing anyone from getting in.

"Hey! What're you doing, please let us in!" Said a girl wearing a pink sleeveless qipao-style blouse and green pants, her hair done into two buns. But after she said that, one of the chūnin backhanded her lightly across the face.

"Tenten!" Said a boy with a bowl style hairstyle with bushy eyebrows wearing a green bodysuit with orange leg-warmers with bandages wrapped around his arm. As he helped his teammate up.

"Ha! Just look at how weak you are, if you can't take even that you have no chance in the exam!" One of the chūnin said as some of the genin around him looked nervous at the piece of information.

Looking at his teammates, Yakumo and Satsuki nodded, noticing that the door number was hidden under a genjutsu. The team made their way slowly around the group, now knowing that it was intentional to weed out those who were unable to detect a simple genjutsu, which made Yakumo sigh.

But as they were about to head up the stair, the saw a scuffle happen.

"Get out of the way!" Sasuke shouted at one of the chūnin.

After all the headache of having to work with his useless team to stop a kidnapper from taking Moegi, they were finally allowed to join the exams when the person they stopped was Iruka who was testing them to see if they were ready.

"Yeah! Get out of Sasuke-kun's way you loser!" Sakura shouted, backing up her crush, as some of the genin shot her a confused look.

"Hey Dickless, Ugly, why don't we just make them?" Sai said, getting hit on the head from Sakura from using his nickname for her.

"Hmph, actually not a bad idea." Sasuke said as he rushed towards the chūnin in an attempt to take him down. But as he neared them, the same boy from earlier with the green bodysuit stopped him, to his shock.

But as he did, the girl from before hit him on the head.

"You idiot! Wasn't it your idea that we act like we're weak in the exam!?" Tenten shouted, annoyed at the hypocritical actions of her teammate.

"Ahh, I'm sorry Tenten! But I just couldn't help myself!" Lee said, apologizing profusely.

"I agree, it was idiotic to ruin the plan like that Lee." A boy with pale, pupil-less eyes said. He had long black hair and wore a khaki shirt and dark brown shorts. His right arm was wrapped in bandages as well as his right leg.

"Again, I'm sorry Neji. I just got caught up in the heat of the moment." Lee apologized to the boy now known as Neji.

But after he did he turned to Sakura who instantly got creeped out.

"My name is Rock Lee, and you must be Sakura. Sakura, please go out with me! I'll protect you with my life!" Lee said, flashing a blinding smile at her.

"No way, you're lame." Sakura said in a flat tone, as Lee looked defeated.

Turning to Sasuke, Neji called out to him.

"Hey you, what's your name?" He said in a slightly smug tone, which the young Uchiha took notice of.

"Hmph, when you want to learn someone's name, you should tell them your own first." He replied, as he started walking away.

"You're a rookie aren't you, how long have you been a genin?" Neji asked once more, the smug look on his face grew small bit more.

"Tsk, I don't have to answer you." He replied, as he walked away Sai and Sakura following behind him.

"_Damn... He looks strong... Who knew there were such monsters here._" Sasuke though, cursing the fact that he still hasn't unlocked his sharingan.

"_Ufufu, he's kind of cute._" Tenten thought, giggling slightly while she looked at the retreating form of the Uchiha.

But as they were about to leave, Lee told them that there was something that he wanted to check out.

Once all the genin left the area, the two chūnin from before released their **Henge**, in their places were Kotetsu and Izumo.

"Well, well, well looks like they passed the first obstacle didn't they!" Kotetsu said in a jovial tone as Izumo nodded.

"Things sure are going to be interesting aren't they?" Izumo questioned, which his partner nodded as they went back to report their findings.

Watching the other genin leave, Team 12 hadn't made their way up the stairs, opting to watch the strange boy known as Rock Lee follow Team 11. Naruto and Yakumo looked at Satsuki, and she sighed knowing what was probably going to happen.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's make sure that my brother doesn't do something that he'll regret." She said as she led her team to where they had gone.

(Scene change - Chūnin exam center: Open room)

Team 11 found themselves in a spacious room as they headed towards the real examination hall. But as they were about to exit, they were stopped when a voice called out to them.

"Hey! You with the dark eyes!" Lee shouted, dropping down to their level surprising the group.

"...You talking about me?" Sasuke said, turning around and facing Lee.

"Yes, I want to fight you." Lee said, his eyes serious.

"My name is Rock Lee, it's commonplace to introduce yourself before someone tells you their name correct?" He said, as Sasuke smirked.

"So you know huh? My name is Sasuke Uchiha, of the Uchiha clan. A fight right now you said?" Sasuke said, then questioned Lee to which the other nodded.

"I want to test my skills and techniques against someone from one of the genius clans of Konoha. And also..." Lee trailed off as he once again stared at Sakura then winked at her, much to her disgust.

"EWW! Those eyebrows! And that haircut!" She screamed, and later became hysterical when Lee started blowing kisses at her which she dodged with surprising skill.

After the round of love comedy was over, Sasuke addressed Lee once more, his eyes darkening.

"You knew about my family and still want to fight me? You must be even dumber then you look. You're about to learn what this name is all about." Sasuke said, as he got into his Koenken stance. As Lee put one arm behind his back and the other faced forward.

Watching up in the balcony, Satsuki could only sigh at her brother's arrogance. She admitted that she used to have Sasuke's mindset about believing that her family was the strongest out there but that changed after she made actual friends and her family, namely her older brother and mother, broke her out of that mindset.

Yakumo patted her best friend on the shoulder as she knew what was probably going through her mind, but Naruto was watching and analyzing Lee's stance. He saw that it was most likely built on speed and power, though it didn't appear to lack the defense that would normally come with such a stance.

But before they were about to start, Sakura called out to Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun! You can't we only have 30 minutes until the exam starts!"

As if on cue, Sasuke rushed forward.

"This will only take 5."

Once he said that, Lee acted meeting Sasuke on the way to his surprise. But he quickly snapped out of it, seeing Lee about to attack.

"**Konoha Senpū**!" He called out spinning his body as he delivered a high kick which Sasuke ducked to avoid, but was hit when Lee rotated once again delivering a low kick breaking Sasuke's guard sending him flying back.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried out, not believing what she had just seen. Sai's eyes were also wide, not expecting such an attack from the strange boy.

With Team 12 Yakumo and Satsuki were astonished by the attack.

"What just happened?" Yakumo asked, trying to wrap her head around the attack as Satsuki, who had her Sharingan activated, copied the movements of the attack.

"That's fast, really fast. Even though I could see and copy him, I wouldn't be able to match up with his speed unless I went all out and even then it would be close. " She said as she narrowed her eyes, now not surprised why her brother got sent flying.

"That first kick... Once he throws that high kick, the evasion margin of his opponent is immediately restrained. Because of that, it augments the chances for that low kick to hit its mark. So that high kick is pretty much nothing more than a flashy feint." Naruto stated, stunning his teammates from how quickly he analyzed and broke down the attack.

Back on the ground floor Sasuke got back up, his eyes burning with fury. Once again, he rushed Lee, who this time launched him into the air with a quick upper kick to his chin. After doing so, he reappeared behind him using **Kage Buyō** as he loosened the bandages around his arms.

But before anything could happen, Team 12 acted.

Naruto dropped to the floor and exploded into a sprint before jumping at the two, to Lee and Sasuke's complete shock.

Once at their level, he grabbed Sasuke and threw him to his sister who caught him and set him down, Yakumo and herself checking him over with their **Shōsen Jutsu** as Naruto grabbed a stunned Lee before he dropped to the ground.

"You know if you followed through with that attack he could've died." Naruto said, tightening his grip on the older boy's arm causing him to wince a bit at the abnormal strength.

"How is he?" Naruto asked his team, turning to face them. Finishing up scanning Sasuke, they stood up and made their way to the two.

"He'll be fine. Nothing major, a little bit of bruising but it's nothing that needs immediate treatment." Yakumo reported, as she and Satsuki looked at Lee with cold gazes making him gulp.

"You're lucky Naruto intervened when he did, if Sasuke had been seriously injured you would've been in a hell of a lot of trouble." Satsuki said, her gaze growing even colder at the end of her sentence. Finally, Naruto let of his arm and started walking away with his team as the others looked on in awe.

"W-Wait! What is your name!" Lee called out, desperate to know the name of the one who managed to break off his **Kage Buyō**. Stopping, the blonde turned around slightly and he froze when he met cold electric blue eyes.

"Naruto." Was all he said before he left with his team.

(Scene change - Hallway outside meeting room)

After the incident involving Sasuke and Lee, Team 12 made their way to the meeting room where the other genin who made it past the genjutsu trap were expected to be. Nodding to each other, they opened the door and were immediately met with a flood of combined killing intent from the other examinees.

This was another tactic to weed out the weak, this allowed the competition to scope out and hunt down the weakest of the weak. But the team that was being subjected to the killing intent had experienced Zabuza's, who's killing intent was at least 30 times greater then this.

Shaking it off, they responded with their own killing intent, a distinct aura surrounding each member of the team. Satsuki had the aura of a blue hawk with crimson eyes. Yakumo had the aura that looked similar to the Ido that was sealed inside of her; being magenta with crimson eyes. Naruto's aura was the same black and crimson reptilian-like monster with burning crimson eyes from before.

Having the combined force of their killing intent brushed off and feeling something 2-3 times as strong, the other genin trembled slightly in the face of the newcomers, giving them a wide berth when they made their way inside eventually taking a spot in the corner of the room.

After a few minutes, they heard the boisterous voice of Sakura and Ino cut through the room, and glancing over they saw that they were bickering once more over the boys that they liked. But as they turned away, the rest of the rookies immediately saw them and made their way over, Narumi leading the charge.

"Naru-nii!" She shouted as she lunged and latched herself to her older brother, who she hasn't seen in nearly 2 months.

"Where have you been!? I haven't seen you around the village at all, it's been almost 2 months since I last saw you!" She questioned her brother, giving her best 'puppy dog eyes' that she could muster, making any lesser man give in, but Naruto was not such a man.

"I've been around Narumi-san." Was all he said as tried to pry her off only for her to tighten her grip. He sighed, knowing that she wouldn't be letting go anytime soon. Unbeknownst to him and his sister, Yakumo and Satsuki were giving her spicy stares which left as soon as the other rookies arrived.

"Narumi! Let go of Naruto-niichan! You know that he doesn't like you clinging to him like that!" Mito half scolded half demanded, once again Narumi had beaten her to the punch. She also desperately missed her brother after not seeing him for 2 months and seeing Narumi cling to him like that made her blood boil with jealously.

As they started to squabble, a boy around their age jumped out of the crowd and threw a volley of kunai at them, Naruto shoving his sisters out of the way as he dodged. After he did, a strange mummified boy appeared in front of him, his hand already in half a ram seal as he swiped at him with a strange perforated gauntlet.

Dodging, at first he didn't feel anything but soon he dropped to one of his knees as his eyes widened slightly, his vision and ears blurring and ringing. Instantly, his team and sisters were by his side, checking to see if he was alright. As they were doing that, Naruto glared at the two who attacked him with slightly unfocused eyes as they started to slowly turn electric blue.

But before anything else happened, a loud voice boomed throughout the room as the door slammed open. Ibiki and a group of chūnin proctors entering, dispersing around the room.

"Thanks for waiting... I'm Ibiki Morino, the exam proctor for the chūnin selection exam's first test. Oto-nin, stop doing what you want. Do you want to fail even before the exams begin?" At that, the mummified boy from earlier apologized for his team's actions.

"I'm sorry Mr. Proctor, this is our first exam so we're a little... jumpy you know." He boy said, as he and his team gave the downed blonde a smug smile before they turned around, never seeing Naruto narrow his eyes, his pupil go from round to draconian.

I'll say this now so you morons had better not forget, there will be no tolerance for unsanctioned conflict. And even if they're sanctioned, killing your opponent will not be tolerated. Any of you pigs that break those rules will be eliminated immediately." He said in a chilling tone, making most of the genin start to sweat.

"For this first exam, you will be seated randomly by drawing lots. Now, come up here an start drawing." Ibiki ordered, as the genin lined up and started pulling out their numbers.

After about 10 minutes, everyone was seated, Naruto seated next to the sound kunoichi that was a part of the team that attacked him earlier. Sitting down next to her, he gave her a soul chilling glare that made her widen her eyes and stop breathing, fear invading every cell in her body from the inhumane glare that she was subjected to, but as soon as it came it vanished when he faced the front. Shakily, she did the same, praying that Dosu and Zaku could handle the demon that they had angered sitting next to her.

Soon, the tests were handed out, and the room went silent as Ibiki addressed them once more.

"As you can see, this is the first portion of the exams and it's a written one. There will be no questions that will be answered during the course of the test. Furthermore, there will be a few rules that you will have to follow. Number 1, there will be a point based system. You start with ten, there are ten questions. You get a question wrong you lose a point, easy right? Number 2, this will be a team based test. You and your teammates will passed based on the total combined score of your team. You will compete to see which team can stay the closest to that total score of 30 points. Number 3, anyone caught doing anything that even resembles cheating will have 2 points taken off for every offence. Those who lose all 10 points will be forced to leave. The chūnin stationed around the room will be observing and watching for anyone who tries to cheat, so be proud ninja and do your own work. And the final rule is, in the situation that you lose all 10 points, you and your team will be eliminated from the exam." At that last rule, an uproar occurred which Ibiki quelled quickly.

Once everything was explained, Ibiki announced the beginning of the test.

"Now, the exam will last 1 hour. Now, you may begin!" With that, silence and pencils on paper filled the room.

As soon as the exam started, Naruto flipped over his exam and quickly scanned the test, his eyes stopping on the final question.

"'_Question 10: This question will be revealed 45 minutes after the test begins. Listen closely to the examiner before answering.' What...?_" Pushing his confusion to the back of his mind, he scanned the test once again and realized that most of these questions required a tremendous amount of theoretical and practical knowledge to answer.

Quickly throwing a glance around, he noticed that some were already cheating; the bun haired girl before attaching a mirror to one of the overhead lights with wires that were attached to her pencil. Shino was gathering information with his insects. Kiba was using Akamaru. The Hyuga were using their byakugan. Shikamaru and Sakura were using their knowledge. Ino exchanged bodies between Shikamaru, Choji and herself to copy his answers. Mito and Narumi were answering using their own knowledge while Menma looked a little panicky. Sasuke and Sai were copying Sakura. Finally, Satsuki, Yakumo and Naruto were able to answer a majority of the questions since Anko pounded theoretical and practical knowledge into their heads.

After half an hour, the 51 teams that came in was reduced to 39. Many were caught cheating and were eliminated, one team in particular was vocal about their elimination to which a chūnin proctor had to put them down. Then another 15 minutes had passed, and once it did, Ibiki announced the start of the 10th question.

"Alright, now we begin the 10th question. Before we start, I'm going to go over a few added rules for this question. These... Are the rules of desperation." Ibiki said in an ominous tone, causing the tense atmosphere to become even more tense.

(Scene change - Jōnin Standby Station)

Gathered in the standby station, the sensei of the squads entered in the exam chatted amongst each other as to what they thought was going to happen and was happening so far.

"I just hope that those kids didn't get themselves eliminated already." Genma sighed, knowing that his squad was probably the one most likely to fail due to their horrible teamwork.

"It'll be alright Genma, you gotta have a little confidence in them!" Asuma said, taking a drag of his cigarette.

"If anything, they should be able to make it past the first exam and at least to the second you know. They are part of the 'Rookie 15' you know." Asuma added in, trying to cheer his friend up.

"If the exams weren't hard enough, they have to deal with _him_ in the first one." Genma added, making the other jōnin look to him with curious gazes.

"Who're you talking about Genma?" Kurenai asked, voicing the question in everyone's mind.

"They got to deal with Ibiki Morino in the first exam." At his answer, everyone sighed and prayed for the success of their genin.

"They're in for a rough time then, I really hope they'll be alright after dealing with that sadist." Kakashi said, as the others nodded their heads at his statement. After they did, the noticed that the last member of the room remained quiet, reading a magazine.

"An-Anko-chan, are you worried about your genin?" Kurenai asked her friend, still not having been forgiven for what happened a few weeks back.

"...They'll pass." Was all she said, her gaze never leaving the magazine making the other occupants of the room a little sad from her indifference.

The atmosphere a little awkward, they returned to talking about who was most likely to pass and who was not. Anko never leaving her magazine.

(Scene change - First Exam testing room)

"Now, why don't we go over the rules concerning the 10th question. Number 1, you must choose whether or not you will answer it." At that the blonde Suna nin, Temari, stood up.

"Wait! What if we choose not to answer it!?" She shouted, making everyone in the room tense up.

"If you choose not to take it, then you automatically lose all your points, making you and your teammates fail the exam. Now for the other rule, if you choose to take it. The lowest scoring member of your squad will be forced to remain a genin forever while the other two who scored higher will advance to the next round." At that the room exploded into an uproar.

"What!? Then what's the point of a team exam!?"

"But what if we all have the same number of points?!"

"Can we decide with our teammates?!"

At the voices shouting about how outrageous the conditions started to rise, Ibiki immediately quieted them down.

"Now, raise your hand if you are going to quit. Once the number is confirmed, you will be escorted out."

Once those words left his mouth, the room became deathly quiet. The team members that had built up friendships with each other immediately narrowed their eyes at their teammates, self preservation over their own success making them turn on them. Friendships and trust built up over the course of their careers as genin were immediately broken, spite and tension in its place.

Seeing the reaction he wanted, Ibiki hid his smirk. After 3 minutes he was about to confirm that no one was going to give up the question, but slowly a hand rose to the complete shock of everyone present.

"Morino-san, I give up my right as well as my team's right to take the 10th question." At that, Yakumo and Satsuki could only stand up gape at their team leader's decision. They had this exam in the bag, they were able to answer pretty much all the questions without much difficulty, minus a few of the cryptograms.

"Na-Naruto, what the hell are you doing!?" Satsuki shouted, her eyes widening in disbelief, not believing that he would take them down with him like that.

"You can't be serious Naruto?!" Yakumo questioned him, her eyes wide, not thinking that the normally blank but confident blonde would do something like this to them.

But he ignored them, his eyes staring straight into Ibiki's and the man had to hide a smile at the brass that the kid had.

"_Most if not all of these kids gave into the fact that they will be leaving one team member behind. Because of that they broke a very important rule of a ninja. This kid though..._" His thoughts were broken when another person raised her hand.

"Mi-Mister proctor, I also would like to quit." Mito said, her voice shaking slightly when her sister and brother looked at her with wide eyes.

After Naruto's decision to not take the test was heard, some of the other teams who were built on friendship remembered that they were a team. Casting apologetic and forgiving looks at each other, more and more of the genin raised their hands to signal them abandoning the 10th question.

Out of the 39 teams that remained seated in the room, 26 had their hands raised. After 10 minutes, Ibiki finally nodded, and signaled the chūnin to split into two groups, one stayed in the room while the other followed Ibiki followed out as he led the 26 teams out.

Once out, he led them into a separate room before he made them line up with their teams. Once they did, he cracked a smile to their complete shock.

"Congratulations, you all pass the first exam." Once those words left his mouth, everyone dropped their jaws.

"I bet you're wondering why you passed when you forfeited the last question right? That question was a simulation of a scenario where you had to take a risk, that risk having two consequences. One, you sacrifice one of your teammates for your own personal gain or two, you give up and retreat with the lives of all everyone. Because in times, information is more important than life and on missions and on the battlefield, people risk their lives to get their hands on it. But even with that being said, you should never give up the life of any of your comrades in order to further your own gain. It seems like one of you noticed that rather quickly." Finishing his last sentence, he looked directly at Naruto and was met with the same blank look from before. The other genin looking in awe at him, Yakumo and Satsuki looking at him with apologetic eyes.

"The ability to be courageous and survive any hardship. These are the abilities needed to become a chūnin captain. Those who can't put their destinies on the line who cling to the notion of furthering their own gain while leaving their comrades to perish alone; those pieces of trash who can only make such cowardly choices do not deserve to become chūnin!" Finishing his speech, Ibiki gave them a larger smile, proud of their decision to not abandon their teammates.

"Now, the 78 of you. Once again, congratulations on passing the first exam." Once he finished, the window exploded as a giant sword embedded itself into the beam on the wall.

The hostile moment was broken when Ibiki sighed as Zabuza appeared in a swirl of mist, on the handle of his sword.

"Alright you brats, I'm Zabuza Momochi, the proctor for the second exam!" Zabuza barked out, seeing the looks of fear on their faces, they all knew that he was the 'Demon of the Hidden Mist'.

"Whoa, there's a bunch of them who passed Ibiki, you must be losing that skill you told me about. I expected you to only pass around 20." Zabuza commented, as Ibiki's eye twitched slightly. But before he could retort, Zabuza pulled out Kubikiribōchō and rested it on his shoulder.

"Well whatever, follow me! We're heading to Training Ground 44. Don't get left behind or else I'll fail you. I have no patience for brats who can't follow simple orders!" With that, Zabuza walked out the door leaving behind a stunned group of genin.

As the rest of them were stunned, Naruto walked forward while he patted Yakumo and Satsuki on the back snapping them out of their stupor as they followed him out the door. Soon, the rest of the genin followed suit.

(Scene change - Training Ground 44)

Arriving at the heavily fenced area, the genin stood in front of Zabuza and a group chūnin as they started to address them.

"Now, welcome to Training Ground 44, better known as the 'Forest of Death'. This is where the second part of the chūnin exams will take place. In this part, you will have to fight and survive for 5 days while trying to reach the tower in the center of the forest. But reaching the tower isn't all you have to do. You will each need to find and secure a pair of these scrolls." Zabuza started, as he pulled out two scrolls labeled with 'Heaven' and 'Earth' and showed them to the genin.

But before he could continue, some of the genin voiced their concerns.

"Wait! Five days!? What about a shower?!"

"What do we eat?!"

"What about a place to sleep!?"

Sighing at the idiotic questions that he was getting, Zabuza continued.

"Didn't you hear? You have to _survive_ in this forest. There's plenty of wild game and edible plants that you can eat. There are multiple rivers and streams that you can get water from and bathe in if you want. But adding to that, there's also some nasty predatory animals and poisonous flora in this forest, so try not to get eaten by a flower alright?" At that, they quieted down and he finished with his explanation.

"Each team will be given one scroll of these scrolls at random to start out with; 13 the 'Heaven' and 13 the 'Earth'. You will need to protect that scroll with your lives, and at the same time fight for the other. To pass, you need to get both to the tower with your entire team intact within the time limit. Now, let me explain what will constitute a failing. Failure to make it to the tower with your team and scroll will fail your team. Having a teammate die or get killed will also get you failed. And that's the other thing. You will be in this forest for five days, once inside you aren't leaving until the time limit runs out. And the final rule, opening the scroll will also cause you to automatically fail no matter what." At that, everyone froze. Seeing their expressions, Zabuza couldn't help but grin under his bandages.

"Now, fill out these forms. They're waivers and information concerning yourself. You need to hand in 3 to get a scroll, and be sure to hide it well. Don't know who might be watching you know. After that, head to a gate and wait until everything is set. And one last piece of advice, try not to die." Finished with his explanation, Zabuza signaled the chūnin to start distributing the forms around.

After getting their forms, Team 12 made their way over to a small rock formation and began filling out their forms. While quiet, their minds were racing. Finally, Yakumo and Satsuki spoke up.

"Hey, Naruto... I'm sorry about earlier, during the first exam. I should've known better then to question your judgment without hearing your reasoning. We're a team after all and we should always trust each other and stick together." Satsuki apologized, feeling guilty about calling out her teammate in front of the entire room.

"I'm also sorry Naruto. You're our team's leader, and we should always have faith in you. I was just scared and nervous, but that still doesn't make what I did any better." Yakumo also apologized, knowing what she did wasn't right.

"It's fine you two, you only did what you thought was right. I don't hold it against you." Naruto replied, making the hearts of his teammates feel lighter then before, their guilt melting away.

"Now, for this exam there will be killing allowed. I don't want the two of you doing anything risky understand?" Now serious, Naruto started to address his team, making them turn serious as well.

"We'll need to find a team to take down and take a scroll from, not only that but we need to protect our own as well, and adding onto that we need to avoid not only other teams but the animals and plants that are inside. The plan is to stay in 'Formation D'; you two will be in the rear this time so keep close and don't let each other out of your sight. I'll take point and keep a lookout for anything in front of us and in the event that we do engage a team, I'll make them break formation while you guys pick them off when they're separated. In the events that things go south, you two retreat and I'll take them off your trail, we'll meet up somewhere else." At his plan, Satsuki and Yakumo nodded, though they didn't like the last part they knew that he was probably strong enough to take on a team of genin alone.

Finishing up with signing their forms, they made their way to the tent where they would receive their scrolls. Along the way, they were stopped by Zabuza.

"Haha, well brats, trying to become chūnin huh!" Zabuza said in a jovial tone, as he greeted them. Giving him a smile, they had a quick conversation to the shock of everyone present.

"We are Zabuza-san, we'll pass this part without any trouble at all!" Yakumo said with determination in her eyes. Zabuza giving her a pat on the head for her determination, much to her embarrassment.

"After we pass, you had better stop treating us like kids!" Satsuki said a smirk on her face, but it quickly left when Zabuza also gave her a pat on the head, her face getting red with embarrassment and anger.

"..." Zabuza and Naruto stared at each other for a while before they smiled, Zabuza putting his hand on his shoulder.

"Don't you die in there brat, we still haven't decided on whose the better swordsman!" Zabuza proclaimed, making the other genin tense up. If Zabuza Momochi had acknowledged him as a swordsman, they were sure that he was powerful as well.

Bidding farewell to their superior and friend, they got their scroll and followed their assigned proctor to their gate.

Finally, a buzzer sounded out and they immediately rushed into the forest.

(Scene change - Forest of Death: Team 12's location)

Once they stepped into the forest, Team 12 sped through the foliage in formation, getting as far away from the gate as possible. Soon, they managed to find a small stream and decided to stop for the moment.

"Alright, status report." Naruto asked, as Yakumo started her assessment.

"So far, we're about 50 meters from out starting position. I didn't sense anything get caught in my **Kyuudou Kiboku** and I didn't sense any genjutsu cast on any of us. I'm sure that for right now, we're safe." Yakumo reported, panting a little from having to maintain her jutsu since the start of the exam.

"I've seen the same. My sharingan didn't pick up any movement in the area, and I didn't see any chakra in the surroundings either." Satsuki gave her assessment, her crimson eyes returning to onyx.

"Alright, thanks you two. We'll take a break for now and regain our energy. Yakumo, take it easy for right now, out of all of us you've used up the most chakra so far so try and recover as much as you can. Satsuki, you keep an eye on things while I go and find us something to eat. When I come back, remember what we talked about alright." Naruto ordered, getting affirmative nods from his teammates as he headed deeper into the forest.

Once Naruto left, Yakumo let out a sigh as she took a seat on a rock as Satsuki fetched some water and made a small fire, boiling it. A comfortable silence took over as they relaxed but kept their senses alert.

"Yakumo, what do you think of the exams so far?" Satsuki asked, putting more fuel into the small fire.

"So far? I think that we're doing great! We haven't run into any enemy ninja or animals, overall I feel pretty confident about our situation so far." Yakumo said with a smile on her face, her best friend returning one.

After 10 minutes, they heard rustling in the brush nearby. Quickly standing up, Yakumo and Satsuki pulled out a kunai while they took up defensive stances. But their tenseness left when they saw the familiar blank face of their teammate.

"Sorry, but I didn't find anything ladies." Naruto said, but was instantly sent flying by a punch from Satsuki.

"Wh-What the hell!" Naruto shouted, his eyes wide in disbelief. But they widened even more when Yakumo fired off a volley of shuriken and kunai at him, forcing him to dodge. Once he was a safe distance away, he was met with a glare from both of the girls in front of him.

"You must think we're morons or something huh." Satsuki said, pulling out another kunai as she activated her sharingan.

"Naruto doesn't call us 'ladies' and he wouldn't have shouted from a weak punch like that." Yakumo added, a handful of shuriken ready as she glared at the imposter.

"Tsk, looks like it failed huh. Well whatever! I'm taking that scroll!" The imposter said before a puff of smoke appeared, a boy wearing a white bodysuit, a respirator on his face sprinting out of it.

Quickly, Yakumo threw her shuriken while Satsuki sped through a series of seals. Seeing the danger in front on him, the boy dodged rolled to the side to evade the hail of shuriken but instantly widened his eyes when he heard Satsuki.

"**Suiton: Suishougeki**!" Satsuki shouted as she fired a large ball of water that crashed into him, sending him crashing to the trunk of the tree behind him. After a few seconds, she released the jutsu as the boy hit the ground unconscious.

After they dispatched their opponent, he disappeared in a puff of smoke a log in his place. As they started to calm down from the rush of adrenaline, it came back when the brush rustled once more; another Naruto stepping out covered in a little bit of blood, carrying a small boar over his shoulder.

Immediately seeing the tenseness of his team, he stopped walking towards him and scanned the area noticing the shuriken lodged in the tree to his right, a pool of water with a log laying in it.

"...So you were attacked." Naruto said, his eyes growing colder; making his teammate's shiver slightly but it also reassured them that it indeed was their teammate.

Getting debriefed about what happened while he was gone, Naruto nodded, cursing himself for letting his guard down. Even though Satsuki and Yakumo stated that it wasn't his fault, he couldn't help but feel like it was, being that he was the one who they all agreed was their squad's leader.

Finishing cooking the boar, he told them that he would keep watch for the night as they ate, still angry at his own incompetence for costing his teammate's valuable energy. At first they protested, but were immediately quieted when Naruto gave them a stern look. Quietly, the pulled out their sleeping bags and went to bed. Naruto pulling out a kunai and started spinning it as he closed his eyes, letting his other senses take over in the darkness that now consumed the forest.

(Time skip - The next morning)

Waking up, Yakumo and Satsuki immediately sat up and frantically looked for their blonde teammate. They found him shirtless, washing his upper body with a damp towel. Unable to break away from the tantalizing site, the two just stared as they wiped away the tiny bit of drool the dribbled down their lips from the stimulating scene. But they were broken out of their state when Naruto suddenly stood up, pulling out a kunai before he was blown away from his position by a sudden surge of wind making the two widen their eyes.

Quickly shedding their sleeping bags they were greeted with the sight of a tall, gaunt man with a single violet-colored rectangular mark on his forehead, his bangs on his left side. He wore a black body suit with various straps that covered it, a cloak hanging on his right shoulder.

"Well what do we have here hmm? Looks like that blonde brat wasn't strong at all, well what about the two of you hmm?" He asked in a condescending tone, making the two girls narrow their eyes at him.

"Oh, scary. It's like facing a pair of agitated kittens." He jeered, finally breaking the last of the girls' patience.

"You'll pay for what you did to Naruto!" Satsuki shouted angrily, her sharingan flaring to life as she pulled out a wakizashi with the Uchiha insignia as the tsuba, the handle wrapped in a cloth of red and white colors of her clan.

"You're going to regret attacking us." Yakumo said in a cold voice, pulling out tanto with her clan's symbol running along the length of the blade, it's handle wrapped in a pink and magenta cloth.

"Oh! Looks like these kittens have some claws huh? Well, let's see how sharp they are!" He said in an arrogant tone dropping down before he pulled out a kunai.

Silence covered the newly made battle zone before Yakumo and Satsuki charged forward their blades intent on running through the man before them. But they were shocked when he blocked both of their strikes with his kunai.

"How disappointing... they're duller then I expected." The man said in a mockingly disappointed tone.

Snapping out of their shock, the two continued their assault, attack in surprising sync with each other to his surprise.

Jumping back, he was met with Yakumo who lunged forward with a low stab intent to pierce his leg, which he pulled back behind himself in response. As he did, Satsuki appeared, her hand on Yakumo's back to support her as she swiped horizontally at his neck intent on beheading him.

His eyes widened when he found himself unable to take step back, quickly glancing down his legs were intertwined with each other. The leg he took a step back with from earlier blocked his dominant leg from taking a step back. Cursing at his error, he dropped to the ground and rolled backwards, Satsuki missing her attack as she hopped off of Yakumo's back.

Standing back up, he tried to take a step back but instead moved he tilted his head to the left to his surprise and horror. Wondering why he made such an erroneous mistake, he saw that Yakumo had one of her hands in a seal and his eyes immediately widened.

"So you saw huh. Looks like my **Heki Ranshinshō** worked then." Yakumo said with a cold smirk appearing on her face as Satsuki gained a similar look, her sharingan spinning ominously.

Seeing the now cold and confident looks on the two girls, Ichi started to sweat, not expecting the girls to be this strong. The information said that the boy was much stronger then they were, but if they were this strong he couldn't imagine how strong that boy was.

He was broken out of his thoughts when the two charged at him, their eyes cold and narrowed as he panicked.

"YOU'RE FINISHED!" They shouted in unison, stabbing him in the chest with their blades as he let out a silent scream.

(Scene change - Forest of Death: Naruto's location)

After he was blown away, Naruto lost consciousness for a few minutes before he came to and scanned his surroundings. Immediately he jumped back as a volley of kunai impaled the spot that he stood on. Looking at the source of the attack, he spotted a curvaceous woman with two purple rectangular markings on her left cheek, a red-violet bodysuit that revealed much of her chest and figure, and long brown hair curled into a spiral. Upon spotting her, she giggled at him before dropping down to meet him.

"Oh, well aren't you a cutie." She said in a seductive tone, matched with a small smile on her lips.

"Who are you. You definitely aren't a genin." Naruto asked in a chilling tone, his eyes becoming colder then ice.

"Oh scary, though you would be much more terrifying and less tempting if you had a shirt on boy." She replied, scanning his body with her eyes. Before she finished though, Naruto was in front of her, his fist cocked back. Her eyes widened in shock before she let out a soundless scream as he buried his fist into her abdomen, sending her crashing to the tree behind dust exploding from the impact.

"Tsk, weak." Naruto said, spitting out the word like it was poison. As the dust cleared, in her place was a shattered log.

"How very scary, what would you do if that had actually hit me?" She said in a hurt tone with a pout on her face before it turned into a scary sneer.

"I'll make you wish you were dead when I'm done with you boy!" She shouted as she charged at him with incredible speed, engaging him in a taijutsu battle.

Lashing out, her palm connected to his chest as he reeled back wincing in pain. Following up with a devastating elbow to his jaw, Naruto tried to take a step back but was met with a kick to his abdomen, sending him back a few feet.

"Looks like you aren't as strong as you think you were huh." She said in a sing-song tone as she made her way towards him. But as she was about to reach him, the ground underneath her exploded, Naruto landing a vicious uppercut on her chin, sending her up in the air before he spun around and kicked the side of her body sending her flying sideways, the Naruto on the ground replaced with a log.

Landing on his feet, he spat out a globule of blood before taking his stance again, his opponent was already walking towards him while dusting off her clothes, which were now ripped in a few places from hitting and skipping on the ground.

"Look what you did! You ruined my favorite outfit! Or maybe... Were you trying to rip it? Hehe, you're such a perverted boy, but I guess that does mean you're healthy." She said in a teasing tone before she vanished, making Naruto's eyes go wide before he was sent flying to through the forest from a kick to the chest.

Finally, he crashed into a river and surfaced, catching his breath from the brutal attack. Getting out of the water and kneeling on it, he tried to analyze his opponent's attacks. They were too strong to be just physical strength and her speed and durability, it wasn't human. Before he could continue along that train of thought, she appeared in a blur and taunted him.

"What's the matter cutie? Can't you keep up with little old me?" She said in a cutesy tone, making which was starting to infuriate Naruto. Seeing his rising agitation, she decided to rouse his anger even more.

"If you're having this much trouble with me, I can't only imagine how those two girls are holding out against Ichi." At that, Naruto's eyes widened, as she gained a cruel smile. But before she could continue, she avoided a slash that would've bisected her.

Jumping back her eyes widened when she saw what he was wielding. It wasn't the great sword that the reports said, it was a large, pitch black scythe. It had had a black blade and shaft with the joint connecting the two having the kanji for 'Void' inscribed in crimson onto it.

Spinning it around a few times, he held it in a reverse grip behind his body as Ni stared in awe, fear starting to seep into her heart from seeing such a weapon. But she had to move as he appeared right next to her already in mid swing. Rolling to the side, she suffered a cut on her side from the attack. Rolling back up, she jumped back to avoid another horizontal swipe and he carried out his assault.

After the short game of cat and mouse, Ni had suffered multiple cuts, the deepest being the diagonal slash on her chest, between her breasts. Naruto didn't look damaged, but he was suffering internally from her attacks from earlier. About to charge in for another flurry of slashes, Naruto stopped when he felt a large explosion nearby as Ni smirked.

"Looks like those girls are finished boy, too bad you weren't there to save them." She sneered, the last of her energy running out. But she quieted and felt fear take over her heart when he turned to face her.

After hearing her taunting, Naruto felt rage boil in his veins. Glaring at her, his navy blue eyes were replaced with burning crimson, his round pupil now reptilian. Getting into a stance with his scythe behind him, he called out the name of his technique.

"**Ekuripusu Saizu: Tsuki Ketatamashii**." Naruto whispered before he vanished and reappeared in front of Ni, as she could only watch on in horror and shock as he swung diagonally vertically and cut of her right arm, followed by spinning his scythe then removing her left leg, then he spun around and cut her in half at the waist, stopping and spinning his scythe once more he cut her head off.

As she died, Ni had one last through run through her head as a smile found it's way to her severed head.

"_Hiruko-sama... He is the one..._" She though before Naruto ended her.

Finishing his assault Naruto followed through with the last swing and slashed vertically once more, splitting her head and severed body in two as they fell to the ground.

Casting one last burning gaze at his dismembered opponent, Naruto's eyes returned to their normal navy before he sealed away his scythe and rushed to his teammate's aid, never seeing the remains of his opponent dissolve into a pool of strange black substance.

(Scene change - Forest of Death: Yakumo and Satsuki vs. Ichi)

Yakumo and Satsuki were confused and scared, after they stabbed the man in front of them he blew up and sent them flying. Once they recovered, they saw that he didn't even have a scratch on him.

Narrowing their eyes, they sped through a series of seals before calling out their jutsu.

"**Suiton: Teppōdama**!" Satsuki shouted, firing off a volley of high speed water bullets.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa**!" Yakumo called out, firing a fast jet of water.

Once their jutsu hit their mark, a large explosion of water and earth covered the area where their opponent once stood, smirking to themselves they quickly panicked and lost it when they saw that he wasn't harmed in the slightest.

"Whew, that was pretty scary you know! I could've actually died you know!" He said in a mocking tone, making the two girls in front of him lose the confidence that they had built up.

"Wh-What are you...?" Satsuki asked, not believing that anyone could take an attack like that and still be ok. But all she got was a scary smile as he vanished, appearing right next to them.

"Wha-" Was all Yakumo managed to say before she was sent flying by a kick, crashing into the river.

"YAKUMO!" Satsuki shouted, not believing what just happened. But she quickly was sent flying when he back handed her to the same area that he sent Yakumo.

After hitting the water, the two girls could only writhe in pain from the power the blows had, finally resurfacing after a minute of regaining their composure. Standing up on the water, they found their opponent was standing on the river with them, a sneer on his face.

"You two should give up, your blonde boyfriend is probably six feet under by now, especially since Ni is fighting him. I wouldn't be surprised if she kissed him before she killed him actually. Not a bad way to go wouldn't you s-" He never finished his sentence as Yakumo appeared in front of him and buried her fist into his abdomen, making his eyes widen as the air was forced out of his lungs.

He didn't have a chance to recover as Satsuki appeared behind Yakumo, the two exchanging places as Satsuki delivered a bone shattering upper kick sending him into the air. Jumping back the two blurred through a series of seal for their most powerful jutsu.

As he began to fall back down, they finished and ended the battle.

"**SUITON: DAIBAKUFU NO JUTSU**!" They shouted in unison, the water from the river forming a circle around the two as two spiraling waterfalls collided with the falling form of their opponent; shredding the ground, uprooting the trees, and battering his body against the ground, as he was subjected to an unrelenting assault of blunt force trauma.

Finally, the water receded, Satsuki and Yakumo dropping onto their knees panting, having used an extreme amount of chakra for their jutsu. Seeing the damage that their jutsu caused, there was no doubt that they finished off their opponent. As that thought rang though their minds, they felt sick to their stomachs, but it vanished when they saw a head of blonde hair emerge from the forest.

"Yakumo! Satsuki!" He shouted, as he sprinted towards them. They're hearts were immediately relieved when they saw that he was okay but then they noticed that there were dark blue, bordering black, bruises that covered his body indicating severe internal trauma. As he reached them, he bent down to help them up, offering the two of them his shoulders which they gratefully accepted.

Making it towards the shore, they finally sat down, the adrenaline from their battle finally fading from their bloodstream. But as they were relaxing after their grueling battle, they never noticed that their opponent didn't perish from the relentless assault.

Ichi, after seeing Satsuki's sharingan, knew that was the one his master wanted. After confirming it, he sent a snake-like creature from his arm towards the group, intent on fulfilling the mission he was given. Naruto, sensing something was wrong immediately shoved Satsuki aside, causing her and Yakumo to turn and begin to shout at him but their words died in their mouths when a snake-like creature bit him near his neck.

Pain. That was all that Naruto could feel the moment he was bitten by the snake. Gritting his teeth in a futile attempt to stifle his cry of pain, he grabbed at the area where he had been bit as he eventually gave in, letting out an agonizing scream of pain, the likes of which his teammates have never heard before.

Quickly ending the snake with a hail of shuriken and kunai, the two were at the side of their downed teammate. What they saw made their eyes widen, there was a strange mark on his shoulder that was in the shape of three tomoe. As tears started to form in their eyes, they heard maniacal laughing from the direction that their opponent had been sent and they saw him, his arms, legs, and neck bent in distorted directions. They finished him off, each with a kunai embedding itself in his head. As he died, a final through rang through his head.

"_Hiruko-sama... He, is the one you have been searching for..._" Ichi said in his mind, as he finally died.

After everything was settled, with a now unconscious Naruto in their arms, Yakumo and Satsuki could only shake at what just happened. Their leader was injured, unconscious and now had a strange looking mark on him because they let their guard down. Before they could fall further into depression, they heard a scream echo through the forest and instantly tensed up.

Locking gazes with each other the two nodded, wiping away the rest of their tears, they steeled their resolve putting Naruto on their shoulders and making their way to a safer place, never seeing that Ichi's body dissolved into another puddle of black substance.

(Scene change - Unknown location)

"Looks like duplicates failed I didn't get the sharingan, but... it appears that I gained something even more valuable..." A voice said calmly, before eerie laughter could be heard echoing in the blackness.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Hope you guys liked it! And yeah, that's the Eclipse Scythe from Ninja Gaiden! It's so sweet! It pretty much looks the same minus the kanji for void on the circular part near it's neck like I described. And yeah, still really bad at writing fight scenes so please be gentle. XD But yeah, leave me a review and tell me how my story is! And PM me if you want to suggest me something alright! Till next time, stay awesome!<strong>

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><p><strong>Henge - Transformation<strong>: This gives this technique has an abundance of uses. The transformation of a skilled shinobi will be exactly like the genuine article, so it will be impossible to tell the two apart. It is typically used to change into people other than oneself, but one also has the ability to change into animals, plants, and even inanimate objects like weapons.

**Konoha Senpū - Leaf Whirlwind**: A taijutsu where one launches a succession of high kicks and low kicks. The high kick augments the chance for the low kick to connect. A power and effective taijutsu technique.

**Kage Buyō - Shadow of the Dancing Leaf**: A technique where a shinobi follows the opponent, closely matching his or her body's movement, just like a leaf that dances in the air is followed by its shadow.

****Shōsen Jutsu - M**ystical Palm**** Technique******: A-Rank, Ninjutsu; This medical ninjutsu allows the user to speed up the body's natural healing process by sending chakra from their hands into a wound or afflicted body part. This allows the user to heal a patient without the need for medical equipment or surgery, making it very useful on the battlefield. It can be used to treat both external and internal injuries. It requires extremely precise chakra control in order to use.

**Ninpo: Kyuudou Kiboku - Ninja Art: Tortoise Shell Divination of Seeking Truth**: B-Rank Ninjutsu, Genjutsu; A jutsu that Yakumo created with the help of Anko, Kurenai, and Satsuki. She creates a dome using her in a similar shape as a tortoises shell that surrounds her and her teammates. The size of the dome created is dependent on the amount of chakra that she puts into it. Once casted, Yakumo hides the presence of anyone within the shell, effectively cutting them off from conventional means of being found be it sight, smell, and hearing. From the protrusions on the shell, lines of chakra are sent out around 25 meters, relaying any information back to Yakumo about anything that breaks the line, similar to a tripwire. It constantly drains chakra, so maintaining it for long periods of time is very exhausting.

**Suiton: Suishougeki - Water Release: Water Crash**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user fires a large ball of water with a jet propelling it towards the target. Once it impacts with the target, it continues to crash and grind the target as long as the user sustains the jet of water that it is attached to.

**Ninpo: Heki Ranshinshō - Ninja Art: False Body Pathway Derangement**: B-Rank Genjutsu; An genjutsu created by Yakumo after Anko told her about Tsunade's true **Ranshinshō**. While it doesn't physically disrupt the electrical senses that control the body of her target like Tsunade's does, it does have a similar effect. Deceiving her target's mind, Yakumo causes their body to respond much slower then they perceive it to, their intended actions losing sync with their actual actions and causes their body to misinterpret the information that is sent to each limb. This genjutsu can be countered once the target understands the mechanics behind it, and are able to dispel it once regaining control of their limbs and actions.

**Ekuripusu Saizu: Tsuki Ketatamashii - Eclipse Scythe: Piercing Moon**: B-Rank Saizujutsu; A technique that involves the use of a scythe. The user removes one of their target's arms, followed by their leg. After they bisect them at the waist before beheading them. The finish up the assault with splitting the now severed parts in half once more. A barbaric technique Naruto self-taught himself with the help of Ryuuhei's scroll.

**Suiton: Teppōdama - Water Release: Gunshot**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user kneads and converts chakra in their mouth into to water and fires it. The size, number, power and speed of the water balls are based on how much chakra is used in the jutsu. It can be strengthened by various different means such as gravity and introducing another element.

**Suiton: Mizurappa - Water Release: Wild Water Wave**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user molds chakra in their mouths into water and fires a stream of condensed water at their target. The range, speed, and power is dependent on how much chakra is used. Can be strengthened by various different means such as introducing another element.

**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu - Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique**: A-Rank Ninjutsu; This technique extends water over a large scale, surges and rises up to several dozens of meters high. Then it streams down to the ground in one big cascade, much like a gigantic waterfall. In doing so, it resembles a huge wave, with tremendous power that can hollow out the ground. What remains after that technique's utilization is reminiscent of no less than the aftermath of a natural disaster. Satsuki and Yakumo's version fires the water like a projectile rather then having it crash down on their target.


	11. Chapter 10

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey there guys! Back again with a beautiful, not really, new chapter! This is the conclusion of the exam in the Forest of Death, but it doesn't include the preliminaries! So don't get mad at me please! But yeah, like always if you guys want to suggest something to me, PM me! You know that I love hearing what you guys have to say, it's really awesome! Well, why don't we get to this reading thing! Let's a go!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 10<p>

(Scene change - Forest of Death: Team 12's location)

After the grueling battle that took place a few hours earlier, Yakumo and Satsuki carried Naruto to a hollowed out tree which they turned into their temporary base. After checking over his vitals, they soon learned that his chakra was fluctuating wildly; not knowing what to do since they never experienced something like this, they could only make him comfortable and put a cool towel on his forehead to calm the fever that he started to develop.

Exhausted and still recovering from their battle, Yakumo and Satsuki took shifts between sleeping and watching over Naruto and the area for any enemies. Even between the shifts of watching and sleeping, both had dark bags under their eyes.

At the moment Satsuki was resting while Yakumo was on watch duty, her tanto held tightly in her hand; fatigue and hunger nipping at her senses. Shaking her head to remove the feelings that she felt, finishing do so she froze as she heard a slight rustling coming from the bush.

Narrowing her eyes, she threw a kunai at the source of the noise as a squirrel left the bush. Sighing at her jumpiness she was about to relax when she saw the squirrel blew up, an explosive tag attached to its back.

Widening her eyes, she quickly shook Satsuki awake, who grumpily demanded to know why she was woken up prematurely. But the look on her best friends face immediately made her snap awake.

"Satsuki... We're surrounded." Yakumo whispered, a bead of sweat dropping down her face as Satsuki widened her eyes.

"How many?" Satsuki asked, pulling out her wakizashi and activating her sharingan as she scanned the area, her own eyes widening seeing that there was minute movement without a breeze present.

"...9 people." Yakumo whispered as Satsuki tightened her grip on her wakizashi. The unnatural silence was broken when the 9 people that Yakumo sensed dropped into the clearing.

Three were the Oto-nin from earlier in the exam, two were with the Ama-nin from before, the final three were Kusa-nin they didn't recognize.

"Well, Well, Well... What do we have here? Two girls all by themselves?" One of the Kusa-nin sneered.

Narrowing their eyes, Yakumo and Satsuki stood up despite the aching in their bodies.

"Oh, looks like they're still able to fight. Well I'll pay you bitches back for earlier!" The Ame-nin said, pulling out a kunai.

Silence reigned over the clearing before both sides charged, the Oto-nin hanging back.

Yakumo took on the group of Ame-nin, dodging as best as her body could, getting cut up in the process. Dodging another slash from one of her opponents, she kicked him in the side, sending him flying off to the side as his teammates attacked with more ferocity, managing to stab her in the shoulder as she stifled a cry of pain.

Side stepping and blocking a slash from another one of the Ame-nin, she spun and smashed her elbow on the side of his head, sending him to the ground. The same Ame-nin from the beginning of the exam was the last one standing one of his teammates were unconscious while the other was struggling to stand up, clutching his side in agony.

Losing his focus from looking at his teammate, Yakumo lunged with her tanto stabbing him in the shoulder as he cried out in pain, but his cry was cut short when she ripped it out then spun it around, smashing the pommel against his temple sending him to the ground unconscious.

With Satsuki, the Kusa-nin landed some lucky blows against her, but she retaliated with twice the power. The taller of the ninja quickly fell when she smashed her elbow against his chest and grabbed him by the hair, spinning and making his teammate stab him in the side as she kicked him away to the same person who stabbed him.

She was met with the shortest of the three who engaged her in taijutsu, kicking her in the side as she punched him in the side of the head as he reeled back. Not letting up her assault, she took a quick step forward before jumping and smashing her knee into his face, sending him to the ground. She finished him off by stomping on the side of his head.

After dealing with the second of the group, she was stabbed in the side by the last of the three. Her eyes wide, she let out a roar before turning around and hitting him in the temple as he dropped to his knees. Not finished, she ripped out the dagger that he used to stab her and returned the favor by embedding it into his shoulder, making him cry out in pain, which was cut short when she smashed his temple once more with the pommel of her wakizashi.

The two girls were both wounded and exhausted now, panting they heard clapping and turned their attention to its source.

"Wow, that's pretty impressive! You each managed to defeat a whole team by yourselves!" A boy with spiky, dark hair and dark eyes mockingly praised them as he clapped.

Seeing that they still had opponents, the two looked at each other and saw that they were in pretty bad shape. Nodding their heads they took a breath before they calmed themselves, opening their eyes and locking gazes with the Oto-nin once again.

"Which one do you want Dosu?" Zaku said, wearing a nasty sneer on his face as he settled into a taijutsu stance.

"It doesn't matter, they'll both be dead either way." Dosu said, holding his 'Melody Arm' in front of him.

Behind them, their female teammate just grimaced hearing her teammates, she knew that the two other girls were in for a painful experience.

Dosu and Zaku went on the offensive, moving with speed that shocked Yakumo and Satsuki, when in reality they were too exhausted and injured to perceive the accurate speed that they were moving with.

Zaku met Yakumo first, making her cry in pain as he punched her in the cheek before moving closer and punching her in the side as she stumbled back. Regaining her footing, she lashed out with a quick punch that Zaku barely dodged, grazing his cheek, to his surprise. Taking advantage of his shock, she took a step forward spun around with her elbow that was blocked to her horror. Not letting up, he kicked her in the side sending her to the ground. He wasn't done as he kicked her in the side, making her cry out in more pain.

Nearby Dosu used his 'Melody Arm' to disorient Satsuki before he delivered a backhand that sent her to the ground. Rolling back to her feet, she spun around and managed to land a kick on Dosu, but he blocked it, making her eyes widen. Grabbing her leg, he kicked out the other one from underneath her. Once she hit the ground Dosu was on her, kicking her in the same place that she was stabbed before making her scream in pain.

Seeing the brutal way that her teammates were fighting, or rather torturing, the two girls, Kin could only ball her fists up and close her eyes, trying to drown out the pained screams that she heard.

After a few minutes, Dosu and Zaku were standing above a bloody Yakumo and Satsuki. The wounds that they had from earlier were opened and oozing fresh blood as they struggled to take in air, their ribs either fractured or broken by the beat down they received.

"Well, that takes care of that doesn't it Dosu!" Zaku said in a condescending tone, as Dosu laughed darkly.

"Well they're of no use. Get rid of them, start with the Uchiha." Dosu said pointing at Satsuki as Yakumo widened one of her swollen eyes.

"N-No. N-Not Sa-Satsuki." She whimpered pitifully, as she tried to move despite the agonizing pain that exploded throughout her body.

But it was useless as Zaku grabbed Satsuki by the hair and pulled out her own tanto, making Yakumo panic even more.

"Well, any last words before your friend goes?" Zaku sneered, as Yakumo struggled to get up.

"N-No. N-No! NO! SATSUKI!" Yakumo screamed as the blade of her tanto drew closer to her best friend's neck.

(Scene change - Inside Naruto's mind)

Since he was bitten, Naruto was just floating around his consciousness, feeling numb in mind and body. He didn't remember anything, he didn't know why he was here or what he was doing, he was just here. But after what felt like an eternity, he heard a voice in the blackness.

"Hehehe... Boy... Do you desire power?" The voice said in an eerie tone.

"Power... I need power..." Naruto blankly answered, never noticing that the moment his answered, the curse seal started to spread.

"That's it boy, accept the 'gift' that I bestowed upon you. Use that power all you like." The voice replied, as the curse seal nearly covered his entire body.

Just as Naruto was about to be devoured by the curse seal, it slowly making its way to finish covering his eye, a light shone in the blackness.

"Naruto, have you completely lost your mind?" A familiar voice called out, making Naruto's eyes widen. As he frantically searched for the source of the voice, desperately trying to remember why he was doing so. Soon, he saw a small ball of light start to grow in size.

Widening his eyes, he watched as the ball of light turned into a person who he felt that he knew, who he felt was someone important to him for some reason though he couldn't see his face.

"Looks like you don't remember me, huh Naruto?" He said in a slightly sad tone.

"_Naruto... Is that... Me?_" Naruto questioned, feeling something in his chest thump at the name.

After staring at him for a while, he saw the black haired man look around and whistle seeing where they were.

"Looks like you're in some trouble here huh? Being lost in all this darkness, being lost in your own heart, being lost in your own soul." He said, making Naruto's eyes widen.

"I-I'm... Lost?" He asked, to which the man smiled. He reached out and put his hand on top of Naruto's head.

"It's alright Naruto... Just try to remember slowly alright." He said as Naruto felt a pang shoot through his head.

"I... I don't remember you..." Naruto said in a sad tone, seeing a sad smile appear on the man's face.

"It's alright Naruto. No matter what, I'll always be here for you Naruto. Even if I'm not here physically, I'll _always_ be with you in your heart as long as you don't forget about me." He said.

At that sentence, Naruto froze, his mind started racing and he felt a fire ignite in his soul. Soon, memories of him and a black haired man started to flash through his mind. Soon, the blackness that invaded his mind vanished as an explosion of light blinded all.

Once the light subsided, the endless black was replaced with a clearing, a large pond in front of it. Opening his eyes, Naruto's blank navy were replaced with electric blue filled with determination.

The curse seal stopped spreading across his body as the man from before placed his hand on the place where he was bitten.

"I'll help you out this time Naruto!" He said in a happy tone, as light started to emit from his palm as the curse seal started to shift.

The three tomoe shaped marks got a gold ring circling it. After it was done, Naruto turned around and smiled at the man, before crashing into him with a hug.

"Ryuu-niichan..." He whimpered, tears slowly giving way as he felt his older brother ruffle his hair softly.

"You've grown up so much Naruto... I wish we could talk more but you need to help them out." He said, as Naruto's eyes widened before he slowly nodded.

Giving one last glance and smile to his older brother, Naruto vanished, leaving Ryuuhei alone in his mind.

The jovial and happy expression on his face vanished as soon as Naruto left, Ryuuhei turning to the corner of his mind and started walking there.

Reaching out, he grabbed a pale, bandaged child by the throat as they stared at him in terror and shock.

"I don't know who you are, but I'll let you know one thing." He said, tightening his grip on their throat, as they desperately grabbed at the hand that was crushing their throat.

"I will not stand by idly as some freak tries to take over my little brother's mind. I'll give you this one warning." Ryuuhei finished, snapping the child's neck as they hung limply in his grip. Soon, black and crimson flames erupted from his hands and consumed the body; Ryuuhei's electric blue eyes replaced with burning crimson.

(Scene change - Forest of Death: Naruto vs. Oto-nin)

Everyone in the vicinity froze when they felt a terrifying and bloodthirsty presence behind them. Craning their necks they froze at what they saw. Naruto was standing up hunched over, his head bowed with his bangs obscuring his eyes. But slowly he raised his head and what they saw would haunt their nightmares.

His eyes were burning crimson with a reptilian pupil, filled with such anger and bloodlust that Zaku dropped Yakumo's tanto and took a step back, Dosu doing the same when he saw those demonic eyes. But those weren't the only major changes about him, near the mark, a strange flame-like pattern had spread across his body, taking over half of his face. The aura that exploded and spiraled around him like a vortex of flames consisted of black, purple, crimson, and navy blue colored chakra.

Letting out a animalistic growl, he took a step forward as the Oto-nin backed up. Before anyone could do anything, before they could blink, he was standing next to Yakumo and Satsuki.

Yakumo was scared, no she was terrified. The few other times that she has seen her blonde teammate angry didn't even come close to this, there was no doubt that someone was going to die. But before she could think anymore about the subject, he spoke in a bone chilling tone.

"Yakumo. Did they do this?" He asked, his voice at the moment lower then a whisper but could be heard by everyone present.

"Na-Naruto..." Yakumo answered, fear gripping every cell in her body as her blonde teammate turned his head and stared at her with his terrifying eyes.

"Well?" He asked once more in a more demanding voice, to which Yakumo could only nod her head in the affirmative.

Getting his answer, Naruto let a chilling predatory smile form on his face as he stared at the other ninja, who were frozen in place.

"..." He said nothing, though his eyes were screaming for blood as he started walking towards the Oto-nin.

"Kuh, don't get cocky you fucker!" Zaku shouted, swallowing his fear as he held his arms out in front of him.

"**Zankūha**! He screamed as a supersonic blast of air at Naruto, who didn't make any move to dodge, letting the blast hit him as a violent explosion of ground and dust filled the air.

"Heh, you're not so tough you bastard! Zaku shouted, but the confidence that he gained was immediately shattered when Naruto stepped out of the dust cloud, no injuries on his person.

Narrowing his eyes at Zaku he disappeared and reappeared next to him, making all of the people present widen their eyes.

Delivering a brutal punch to Zaku's side, the sickening crack and crunch of his ribs being destroyed filled the air, as he screamed in unimaginable pain being lifted into the air from the force of the blow. Grabbing him by the ankle, Naruto turned around and slammed him into the ground, his head hitting the ground with another crunch echoing throughout the area.

Naruto repeated the process of picking up and slamming Zaku on the ground until he was nothing but a broken sack of flesh and bone, some of his bones jutting out of his body. After he finished, he threw him to the feet of Dosu and Kin, who screamed and fell on her rear; tears flowing from her eyes as she urinated herself. Dosu fell to his knees as Naruto made his way over to him, shaking uncontrollably with each step that he took.

Vanishing, Kin wasn't able to fully turn around as she felt an arm rip through her back and watched in horror as it exploded out of her chest, holding her heart in his hand. Right before everyone's eyes, he crushed her heart as she vomited a mouthful of blood, swaying before hitting the ground, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Having seen both of his teammates get murdered so brutally, Dosu couldn't do anything. He couldn't scream when Naruto broke his arm, or when he ripped his arm off. He could only watch in silence as he was dismembered inhumanely, before Naruto brought his foot up, intent on crushing his skull.

Suddenly, the world started to go black as he stood above him with his foot descending. But as the world was nearly covered in blackness, it shattered. They were in the same positions as before, but there were notable changes in all three of them.

Zaku was trembling with his hands covering his head as he stared at the blonde in front of him. Kin was sitting down, a stain covering the front of her pants as tears flowed out of her terrified eyes. Dosu was shaking as his unfocused eyes locked on with the blonde from before, who was just starting to walk out of the dust cloud.

"_Wh-Wh-What the h-hell?! D-Did I g-go back in ti-time?!_" Dosu screamed in his mind, he had seen Zaku and Kin get brutally murdered and he was just about to die. About to question what was reality and what wasn't the monster in front of them vanished once again.

But there was not sound of Zaku's ribs being shattered, instead there he was, standing behind Zaku.

"ZAKU BEHIND YOU!" He screamed, or he tried to scream, all that came out was a gurgled noise as he couldn't muster the words to scream.

Widening his eyes, Zaku turned around and terrified black met crazed crimson. Before anyone could do anything, Naruto buried his hand into Zaku's shoulder. He wasn't even able to scream in pain fast enough, as the sickening snap of bone alerted them that Naruto had destroyed his rotor cuff.

"GAHHH!" Zaku screamed in agony, the pain unlike anything that he ever felt in his life.

Ripping his hand out, he lashed out with his left foot, connecting and snapping Zaku's right knee joint as his leg was blown out underneath him, making him fall face first towards the ground. He was fell faster when Naruto struck the back of his head, making him hit the ground with a hollow crack echoing.

To everyone's horror, he stomped on Zaku's other rotor cuff, another crunch echoing out from it being crushed. Once he finished he turned his attention to his new prey, who were unable to do anything in the face of a monster beyond their comprehension.

Dosu wasn't able to do anything when he started walking towards Kin and himself. Locking eyes with him, he felt his very soul being devoured just by looking into those eyes.

But before could do anything, they heard a series of groan and moans, the Ame and Kusa-nin waking up from the battle from earlier. Naruto stared at them, he decided to deal with them first.

"Kuh, those bitches hit harder then I expected." One of the Ame-nin said.

"Yeah, once I get my hands on them they'll be begging for me to kill them." One of the Kusa-nin said.

As both groups agreed to get revenge on the girls that beat them, they froze when they felt killing intent like no other. Craning their necks, they saw the blonde for earlier. But this blonde wasn't like they remembered.

Before any of them could speak, he lashed out with his foot, connecting with the head of the Kusa-nin who finished speaking his head jolting at an unnatural angle as he fell to the ground motionless. Pulling out a kunai, he threw it with such force that it imbedded itself up to the ring into the skull of the Ame-nin who spoke earlier, as he fell to the ground also motionless.

He stared at the rest of them with burning crimson eyes as they started to panic.

"WA-WAIT! HERE! IT'S OUR SCROLL!" The Ame-nin scream, throwing the scroll at his feet, the Kusa-nin doing the same as they crawled away from the monster in front of them.

"W-WE, WE WEREN'T GOING TO DO ANYTHING TO THEM! WE SWEAR!" They screamed, as he slowly went through a series of hand seals to their horror. They turned to run, and Naruto let them, seeing them soil themselves as the fear overrode all bodily senses.

Retracting his hands, Naruto returned his attention to the remaining Oto-nin. During the 'fight' Dosu had collected the broken body of his teammate and Kin, and was about to escape but we was met with the crimson eyed blonde.

"PL-PLEASE! JU-JUST LET US GO! WE'RE SORRY! BUT WE WERE UNDER ORDERS! I SWEAR!" Dosu begged, as he got on his knees and pleaded for his life, Kin doing the same when she saw those crimson eyes on her. They couldn't react when Naruto appeared next to Dosu, grabbing and breaking the 'Melody Arm' and the forearm that it was attached to, Dosu's radius jutting out sickeningly; as he grabbed his ruined arm, screaming in agony.

"... Leave your scroll and get out of my sight. If I see you again, I'll do far worse then what you just experienced." Naruto said in a chilling tone, as Dosu lowered his head whimpering, dropping the scroll on the ground as Kin nodded hers submissively.

Once they were gone, he collected the scrolls from the other groups before he made his way towards Yakumo and a now conscious Satsuki, as they gave him terrified looks which made him stop.

Seeing his teammates so terrified of him, Naruto could only close his eyes as the curse seal receded, the flame-like markings leaving his face. As it returned to the area on his shoulder, Naruto fell onto his knees as he started panting, feeling the drain of using his new seal for the first time.

Regaining his composure, he stood up, albeit shakily, once again and made his way to his teammates. His crimson eyes replaced with his navy ones. But once again, the two backed up when they saw him getting closer. Looking at them, their reactions of unbridled fear, he didn't know why but he felt a slight pang in his heart. Bowing his head, he nodded as he left the clearing, intent on finding something for them to eat.

Fear. That was the only thing that the two could feel at the moment. Their kind, but blank faced teammate turned into a monster right before their eyes. Yakumo and Satsuki have never felt such fear from one person in their lives, even their first encounter with Zabuza didn't place that much fear into their hearts. Seeing him approach them with those crimson eyes, they tried to run away from pure instinct, when they did, they saw him stop.

After that, they saw that his eyes had returned to their normal navy, but they still, they felt fear from seeing him brutally take down his opponents. But once they saw his eyes, felt their hearts break slightly. They were hurt, Naruto was actually hurt from them acting that way. Once he left, they were both silent, but they knew that they had hurt the person who protected them.

Soon, Naruto returned with another small boar. Wordlessly, he prepared the boar and tended to the camp. Ignoring the slightly fearful looks still on his teammate's faces, he also tended to them. Stripping them of their bloody shirts and pants, to their utter mortification, Naruto healed and closed the wounds that they had with the little medical jutsu knowledge that he had.

Once he was finished, he wiped down their bodies with a wet towel to clean off the dry blood and grim that had built up, adding even more to their embarrassment. Once he finished, he bandaged and clothed them, all the time, never looking into their eyes or speaking a single word.

As night fell, Naruto stayed by the fire as he carried and placed Yakumo and Satsuki into the spare sleeping bags that he had sealed away after he finished feeding them, opting to keep watch for the night. As the two watched the back of their teammate, they couldn't stop their eyes from watering as they reviewed what happened in the past few hours.

Even after seeing the fear that they felt towards him, the fear that they knew that he saw, he still cared for them like nothing happened. When they backed away, trying to run, they knew that at that moment they hurt him deeply, the pain that quickly flashed through his eyes wrenched their hearts. Slowly, they quietly cried themselves to sleep, never seeing that Naruto bowed his head slightly as he heard them.

Soon, morning came, the forest slowly coming alive with the sounds of the fauna waking up Yakumo and Satsuki. For the first time in nearly 3 days, they had a good night's sleep. But remembering where they were, they quickly tried to get up, but winced as pain shot through their body. Slowly, they managed to ease their way into a sitting position as they saw their blonde teammate still in the same position as he was yesterday, making breakfast.

Their eyes softening, the forced themselves to stand up, using the walls of the tree to help stabilize their balance they managed to stand up though their legs were a little shaky. Slowly, they made their way towards him, but stopped when he heard him speak.

"You two shouldn't be moving yet." He said in a quiet tone, never turning to face them.

Hearing his tone, they grew more determined as the finally made it to where he was sitting, their legs finally giving out underneath them. Silence prevailed over the campsite as none of them spoke another word, the quiet crackle of the fire and the ambient sounds of the forest echoing softly in the background. Finally, Yakumo broke the silence.

"Na-Naruto?" She called his name in a soft and unsure tone, hoping that he didn't close off his heart to them after their actions.

"...What is it?" He asked in an equally soft tone, turning over the fish, choosing not to face them.

"A-Are you alright?" Satsuki continued, reaching out and touching his arm, as Yakumo mirrored the action.

"I'm fine." He replied, taking off the fish from the fire and placing it near the two.

Seeing that they weren't going to get through to him, they nodded sadly, taking the fish that was obviously placed close for them to reach without straining themselves.

As the morning slowly turned into the afternoon, Yakumo and Satsuki were able to move without the sharp pain from earlier. They weren't able to move fast, but they could move. They had 2 days to get to the tower, and they intended to reach it with one day remaining.

When Yakumo and Satsuki told Naruto that they wanted to continue, he questioned them, telling them that they were unsuited for moving but they demanded that they keep moving, not wanting to risk the chance of failing.

Once he saw their determination return, he nodded, though they never saw the same determination reflect in his eyes as they remained as blank as they were the first day that they met all those months ago. On their way to the tower, Naruto took point, this time they could see that he was tenser then he was at the beginning of the exam.

The afternoon sun now clearly overhead, they could see the top of the tower to their joy. But as soon as that joy came, it left when another group of Ame-nin ambushed them.

"Well, looks like we got lucky boys! Looks like two are injured and the other is exhausted! Quick, take their scrolls!" One of the boys said, as his two teammates led the charge.

Yakumo and Satsuki were about to react, but then they froze when Naruto took a step forward.

Arriving at Naruto's position, one of the boys threw a straight punch towards him, which he crouched and dodged, sweeping his feet out from underneath him. As he fell, Naruto spun on his hands and smashed his heel into the side of the Ame-nin that he tripped; a cry of pain leaving his lips as he was sent flying.

Seeing his teammate get dispatched so quickly, the other boy lost his focus which Naruto exploited. Throwing a punch that broke the boy's nose, Naruto followed up and punched him in the ribs as he hunched over and grabbed them. He finished off his opponent when he punched him in the jaw, sending him to the ground out cold.

Lifting his head up, he started at the boy he assumed was the leader of the team as he shook in fear, not believing that one person could take out his team. He was broken out of his thoughts when Naruto was standing next to him, a cold sweat dropping down the side of his head.

His eyes widened and went blank when Naruto buried his fist in his stomach, as he dropped to his knees holding his stomach as he lost consciousness. After dealing with the ninja, he searched them and found another scroll. Having their original 'Heaven' scroll, they now had two complete sets of each with an extra 'Heaven' scroll.

Looking back at his team, he motioned for them to follow him as they nodded, moving as quickly as they could to reach the tower.

As they saw the entrance of the relief filled Yakumo and Satsuki, finally relaxing visibly as they quickened their pace. Entering, the door they found themselves in an open room with a broken message on the wall.

"Without... Heaven...?" Yakumo said, furrowing her brows as she tried to decipher the message.

"Wait, I think we have to open the scrolls you guys." Satsuki said after seeing the words for heaven and earth.

Looking at each other, the two girls nodded as they turned to their male teammate who handed them a pair of the scrolls. Opening them, the panicked when they started smoking, quickly, they threw the scrolls to the other side of the room, Naruto taking up a protective position in front of his injured teammates.

But as the smoke cleared, they were met with the smiling face of Iruka.

"I-Iruka-sensei?!" Satsuki and Yakumo shouted, relieved to see a familiar face.

"Whoa, looks like you guys had some trouble out there huh." He said in a worried voice, seeing the state that his previous students were in.

"Sensei, why are you here?" Yakumo asked, not expecting to see her old teacher in the exams.

"Ah, well at the end of the second exam, the chūnin meet with the examinees. And I just happened to be the one to greet you three!" He said, as they nodded at his explanation. Pulling out his watch, he smiled seeing his that his students made good time.

"The second exam... All three of you pass! Congratulations!" At that, Yakumo and Satsuki got teary eyed and furiously wiped away the tears that threatened to spill before they gave a brilliant smile. Naruto relaxed visibly, letting out an exhausted sigh as he dropped to one of his knees.

"Naruto!" They shouted, rushing over to check on him. As they got a good look at him, they noticed the dark bags under his eyes as he forced himself to stand up despite the protests of the three present.

"I'm fine. Iruka-sensei, could you take Yakumo and Satsuki to the infirmary, they need a better medical examination then what I provided." At that, Iruka was about to escort the girls but they quickly snapped at Naruto.

"You're coming with us you idiot!" Satsuki shouted as she grabbed his arm, not going to let him act like the cool guy he was trying to be.

"I agree, you're going to the infirmary with us Naruto. Out of all of us, you're the most injured!" Yakumo also said, holding onto his other arm.

Sighing, he nodded his head in defeat as Iruka laughed at the scene, Yakumo and Satsuki having victorious smiles on their faces as they followed Iruka to their destination.

(Time skip - 1 Day later)

After arriving at the tower a day early, Team 12 had the whole day to rest and recover their strength. Once they made it to the infirmary, they saw that Tsunade and Shizune were overseeing the treatment of the patients that came in. They were stunned to learn that they weren't the first ones who made it to the tower, learning that the Suna-nin made it within three days but what was more stunning was that they didn't have a scratch on them.

As for their injuries, Yakumo and Satsuki had a few minor fractures in their ribs, their stab wounds weren't infected due to Naruto disinfecting it after the battle. They had some minor bruising around their ribs from when Zaku and Dosu had kicked them but overall they were in great condition.

Naruto on the other hand, he had some internal bleeding from his battle with Ni, which when questioned by Tsunade and Shizune, who couldn't believe the extent of the damage, told them that it was just from a fight which they didn't believe at all. Aside from the internal bleeding, he had some fractures on his ribs and chest area but they were taken care of by the two medics.

Once they were finished with their checkups after their treatment, they were allowed to leave though Naruto fell asleep and quickly gained a severe fever, which made his team and the medics nervous, unable to find what was causing it.

At the moment, he was in the bed while his teammates tended to him, taking turns to wet the towel and fold it onto his head. The staff smiling knowingly at them and teasing them that they were taking care of their boyfriend, which they fervently denied.

After a while, they were asked to leave as Shizune and Tsunade were going to perform another scan on him, seeing that they weren't going to be allowed to stay, they took a stroll around the building, and they saw some familiar faces.

"Yakumo? Satsuki?" A voice called out. Turning around, they were met with a head of blonde hair that belonged to Narumi.

"Ah! It is you guys!" She shouted happily, relived to see that someone else had passed.

"Yeah, so you guys made it through the exams too?" Satsuki asked, which Narumi nodded, quickly calling over her siblings.

"Ah! Ya-Chan!" Mito shouted, hugging her friend who hugged her back.

"Are you guys ok?" Yakumo asked, getting a nod from Menma.

"Ha! What do you expect, we are the kids of the Hokage!" Menma said, as his the girls rolled their eyes at his statement.

After the introductions were done, they quickly chatted about what happened in the forest. Yakumo and Satsuki not telling them about Naruto, per his request, which they promised not to speak of again. But then Narumi noticed one important thing.

"Wait. Where's Naru-nii?" At that question, Yakumo and Satsuki's happy faces fell into a sad one, scaring the other two girls as Menma narrowed his eyes.

"He's got a really bad fever, even Tsunade-sama and Shizune-san aren't able to find out what's causing it." Satsuki said, balling her fists up at her own powerlessness.

Hearing that their beloved brother was in such a state made Mito and Narumi panic, as they turned and were about to go see him, but they were stopped by Yakumo and Satsuki.

"Let go!" Mito shouted, trying to pry her hand out of her best friend's grip.

"I have to go check on Naru-nii!" Narumi shouted, desperately trying to break Satsuki's grip.

They stopped when they felt the grip on their wrists tighten.

"Don't you two think that we want to check on him too?! He's our teammate, he's the one who saved us in that forest, and protected us when we were injured!" Yakumo shouted, startling the siblings, never hearing her shout in the time that they knew her.

"I know that you're worried about him, we all are but... there's nothing that we can do to help him." Satsuki said as he released her grip on Narumi, Yakumo following suit. Looking down, Mito and Narumi nodded their heads as Menma just scoffed and left to find Kiba.

(Scene change - Center Tower: Cafeteria)

After the incident from earlier, the girls made their way to the cafeteria in the tower, the tense and depressing atmosphere from earlier gone. Along the way they bumped into Hinata who Narumi instantly hugged and returned the hug, happy to see that their best friend made it through.

Securing a table, they discussed the exams so far and about the most recent happening.

"So, who else made it so far?" Satsuki asked, curious seeing as the entire 'Rookie 15' made it past Ibiki's test.

"Well, we know that 26 teams passed right? The Suna-nin, the Oto-nin, Team 7, Team 8, Team 10, Team 11, Team 12, and the team with that weird green spandex guy are the most notable." Narumi started, putting a piece of tempura in her mouth as her sister swallowed and carried on.

"From what I've seen so far; Team 12, Team 7, Team 8, and the Suna-nin have made it here. Meaning that out of the 13 possible teams to pass, there are still 9 more left." Mito said, popping a piece of chicken into her mouth as Satsuki decided to add more information.

"There's not going to be 9 who are going to make it you guys." Making the other girls, minus Yakumo, stare at her in confusion.

"What do you mean Satsuki-san? If 4 teams already made it, then there are still 9 that need to secure a scroll right?" Hinata questioned, as the other girls looked at the two.

"Satsuki's right, because we're the one's responsible for taking out 3 extra teams." Yakumo said, stunning the others.

"Wh-What do you mean?" Mito asked, still not understanding what her best friend was getting at.

"Well, there would have been 13 people who would've passed correct? Well, with us here, that means that that number dropped to 9. But, we also secured an extra set of scrolls, dropping the total number to 8." At that, the other girls gaped at them, not believing that they got an extra set of scrolls.

"You guys got an extra set?!" Narumi shouted, getting hit over the head by her sister for her behavior.

"That's not all, we also secured another 'Heaven' scroll remember Yakumo? That number effectively dropped down to 7." At the added information by Satsuki, their jaws dropped.

"Ho-How many people did you ha-have to fight?" Hinata asked, not believing that she heard them correctly.

At that question, they saw the two ball up their fists before they answered.

"We were ambushed by 3 teams." Satsuki said, still angry at the act as Yakumo reflected similar thoughts.

"Wh-Whoa... How did you guys managed to make it?" Narumi asked, her eyes wide at hearing about the ambush as Hinata and Mito matched her expression.

"We each managed to take down a team each, but then the Oto-nin took advantage of our exhaustion and pretty much beat us into the ground." Satsuki explained, as the other girls gained angry expressions.

"Just as they were... about to kill Satsuki." At that, Satsuki clenched her teeth as the others released a gasp. Not believing that one of their friends almost died.

"Naruto, who was unconscious, woke up and destroyed them." Satsuki finished, as the table grew quiet.

"Na-Naru-nii? What do you mean 'destroyed'?" Narumi asked almost fearfully, as Mito and Hinata gulped at the ominous way she said it.

"Le-Let's just say, it wasn't pretty." Yakumo quickly said, having a tone of finality as the other's catch on, dropping the subject.

There was an awkward silence that appeared, but it was quickly dispelled by Hinata.

"S-So who else do you think will pass?" At the new topic, they instantly moved past the previous mood and happily chatted amongst each other.

(Scene change - Inside Naruto's Mind)

Naruto once again found himself in the same area that he was last time, a place that greatly resembled the place where he met Ryuuhei all those years ago. Looking around he noticed that the lush green grass was withering away, the clean blue water had a tainted purple to it.

Soon, he heard a voice laugh through the area. Tensing, he narrowed his eyes and scanned the area. Unable to made heads or tails of its direction, Naruto tried molding chakra but found himself unable to. Suddenly, Naruto fell to his knees as he grabbed at the seal on his neck.

The gold ring that surrounded the seal was now black and cracked. Soon, it shattered as the seal started to spread over Naruto's body.

"Guh!" He grit his teeth as he tried to bear the pain that was coursing through his body. As he was trying to fight off the pain, a voice echoed through the clearing.

"_Why are you fighting? Don't you need power? I can give you all the power that you need if you just accept it._" The voice echoed, as Naruto put a hand on his head, feeling like it was splitting in half.

"Ge-Get out of my he-head." He weakly said, the curse seal nearly taking over his body once again.

"_Just accept the power that I gave you boy. I can give you more once you accept it._" The voice continued, as Naruto was at the end of his ropes.

Just as he was about to be corrupted by the seal, a comforting and familiar voice spoke.

"I thought I already warned you."

Weakly lifting his head, Naruto's eyes widened when he saw the figure of his older brother.

"Ry-Ryuu-niichan..." He managed to say, as Ryuuhei as at his side. Holding him, Ryuuhei placed his hand back on the seal and like last time a golden ring surrounded the seal.

The pain that was coursing through his body slowly started to leave as did the curse seal. Once both completely vanished, Ryuuhei helped his little brother up before he was hugged tightly.

"...How are you here? I thought..." Naruto asked, his voice trailing off at the end as Ryuuhei ruffled his hair.

"I am." He answered, as he felt Naruto tighten his grip on him.

After the two stayed in that position for what seemed like an eternity until Naruto let him go, the two sitting down at the bank of the lake. Silence dominated the two, which was broken by Ryuuhei.

"I bet you're wondering why I'm here, sitting with you like we did in the time huh?" Ryuuhei asked, which Naruto nodded in a bashful way. Seeing the reaction of his brother, he put his hand on his head and ruffled his hair.

"Well, I was going to tell you but I guess 'it' took me out before I could." Knowing what he was talking about, Naruto balled his hands into fists.

"When you opened that scroll for the first time, the moment you mixed your blood and chakra with the seal, it placed a seal that I created on you once you made contact with it. What that seal did is what you're seeing right now. I sealed a bit of my chakra and a piece of my soul in it." At his explanation, Naruto's eyes went wide.

"Do-Does that mean... You'll be with me like before?" Naruto asked in a desperate tone, making Ryuuhei give him a solemn smile in return.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but my time is going to be up faster then I expected." Hearing him say that, Naruto could only look down.

"What do you mean 'faster then you expected'?"

"What I mean is, I've got to take care of that damned seal on you." Ryuuhei said as Naruto snapped his head up to look at him. But before he could say anything, Ryuuhei quieted him with another ruffle of his hair.

Standing up, he placed his hand over the seal once more. Making an unknown seal, Ryuuhei closed his eyes as Naruto felt a tingling sensation that soon turned into a painful one. Snapping his eyes shut, he gritted his teeth as Ryuuhei continued to channel chakra into altering the seal.

"**Fuinryuu Ougi: Ryuujin Gekirin Tentoubatsu**!" Once he shouted the name of his jutsu, Naruto screamed, unbelievable pain coursing through his body. The pain of the curse seal from earlier would've felt infinitely more bearable then the torture the he was being subjected to now.

Snapping his hand to where Ryuuhei's hand was, Naruto's left hand started to gouge Ryuuhei's while his right was buried into the earth. After what felt like an eternity, Naruto fell face first into the grass, panting as pain spiked randomly though his body.

Sitting down next to him, Ryuuhei gently patted the area that the curse seal was located; the dead grass and tainted water being replaced with their natural look before they were tainted.

"You did great Naruto, that power... it belongs to you now." Ryuuhei said in a soft and proud voice, removing his hand from Naruto. The three tomoe shaped seal replaced with the head of the dragon.

As soon as his hand was removed, the seal started spreading once more. But instead of the black flame pattern from before, black jagged scales started to spread from the seal. Finally Naruto forced himself to sit up, as he did he widened his eyes as he saw that Ryuuhei had tears in his eyes.

"Ryuu-niichan! What's wrong!" He shouted, feeling much stronger and faster then before, but he ignored it and approached his older brother. But he was stopped when Ryuuhei pulled him into a hug.

"Naruto... I'm so proud of you. You've become so strong in such a short amount of time. I can see that you've already mastered many of the things that I left in that scroll." Ryuuhei said as Naruto lowered his head and returned the hug, knowing what was happening.

"I'm sad that I haven't been here to watch you grow and become the strong young man that you are now, but I'm glad that I could at least see now, even if it was short." Now tears were streaming down the faces of both as they tightened the hug they shared, both shaking as they tried to stop the sobbing that filled their hearts.

"Naruto... I'm proud that you found the strength to forgive those who abandoned you and that you've saved and gave strength to those who needed it. Just remember otouto, find those special people who you can give a place in your heart. I hope in the future that you find 'her'. And remember, above all else, no matter what, I'll always be here for you. Even if I'm not here physically, I'll _always_ be with you in your heart as long as you don't forget about me." With those words, Ryuuhei gave his brother one last brilliant smile that was returned, as a flash of light surrounded the two.

"_Goodbye... Otouto..._"

"_Goodbye... Ryuu-niichan..._"

(Scene change - Central Tower: Infirmary)

Tsunade and Shizune were confused, more confused then they have ever been in their careers as medics. One moment Naruto's pulse had been low so much that he was considered to be in the Shinigami's grip, his face cold and pale. But strangely, this pulse started to climb back into a stable state, his color returning to its normal natural glow. But what happened next, they never imagined they'd see in their entire lives. They saw Naruto release a stream of tears from his closed eyes, saying the name of someone they didn't have any knowledge of.

But before they could think about the situation anymore, Naruto slowly opened his eyes, his normally blank eyes filled with such love, longing, sadness and warmth that they choked on their own saliva, having never seen such beautiful eyes in their lives. But as soon, they returned to their normal blankness, much to their disappointment and confusion. They were broken from their stupor when he slowly sat up and started stretching before he turned to face them.

"...Tsunade-sama, Shizune-san." He greeted them, making them refocus their attention on him.

"O-Oh, how are you feeling Naruto?" Tsunade asked, though she really wanted to ask about the name of the person that he whispered.

"I'm feeling fine Tsunade-sama, how long was I out?" He asked, which she told him that it was the morning of the final day, saying that he was fine for time.

Nodding, he moved to get up but was stopped by Shizune who panicked seeing him move.

"A-Ah! Na-Naruto-kun! You shouldn't be getting up yet!" But Shizune's concerns fell on deaf ears as he stood up, making her immediately get a small blush while Tsunade sighed. He was just in his boxers, allowing the two older women a better view of his body without his life hanging in the balance.

Ignoring the two, he put two fingers on his wrist as a poof of smoke obscured his hand, set of clothes appearing; a high collar sleeveless black shirt, black combat pants and boots. After, he started to get dressed as he closed the curtains that surrounded his bed. Once inside, he unsealed a roll of black combat tape and proceeded to wrap both arms up to the his elbows. Finished, he pulled back the curtains and was met with a surprised Tsunade and a charmed Shizune, bowing and thanking the two once more, he excused himself and exited the infirmary.

Once he left, Tsunade turned to Shizune and addressed her.

"Shizune." Hearing her mentor speak in such a serious tone, she quickly lost the pink in her cheeks and stared directly into Tsunade's eyes, giving her full attention.

"Yes Tsunade-sama?" She answered, feeling slightly nervous, never having seen her mentor like this in quite some time.

"Do you have a crush on Naruto?" Tsunade said in a teasing tone as Shizune 's eyes went wide as she started stuttering with a blush on her cheeks.

"TSU-TSU-TSUNADE-SAMA! DON'T SAY SUCH THINGS!" She screamed making random motions with her hands at the question her mentor asked.

"OH! You do, don't you!" Tsunade squealed, as her student started screaming her hands covering her face.

"Come'on Shizune! You're only a few years older then him! Don't give up just like that, you've got quite the body you know!" Tsunade said, trying to cheer her student up only to have Shizune let out one last scream of indignation before she fell backwards onto the bed behind her, her hands still covering her face.

"Kill me." She begged, as her mentor just laughed loudly at her, continuing to tease her about her crush.

(Scene change - Central Tower: Cafeteria)

As he made his way towards the cafeteria, Naruto noticed that there was no one else around. When he made it to the cafeteria, he got a small bowl of ramen and sat alone on one of the benches in the area. As he was eating he heard someone and turned to look at them, raising a brow when he saw her.

Kin Tsuchi wasn't having a great day at all. Her team had barely survived their encounter with that blonde demon, and because of the brutal way he took care of Zaku and Dosu, they had a tough time getting into the next part of the exam. But once they were healed back up by the medics, they immediately started beating her again. Sure, she didn't have the 'Melody Arm' or the air tubes that Dosu and Zaku had, but that didn't mean she was worthless.

(Flashback - A few hours earlier)

"DAMN IT, THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT YOU USELESS BITCH!" Zaku shouted, as he backhanded Kin, sending her to the ground as he held her cheek.

"Guh! Fuck it still hurts!" He yelled, massaging his newly healed rotor cuffs, before he glared back at the downed girl.

"You're still a useless bitch, why didn't he kill you instead of breaking my arms!" He shouted as kicked her in the side, making her cry out in pain.

"Tsk, you had better keep your voice down!" Zaku snarled, as he stomped out of the room.

Pushing herself off the ground, she rubbed her sore side as she sighed. But before she could do anything, she was sent back to the floor by Dosu.

"Zaku's right you know. Why were we, the elites, subjected to that monster's wrath while you got away scot free? It infuriates me!" He shouted, also venting his anger by kicking her once again in the side, making her cry out louder in pain.

"You had better hope that the plan is a success, if it isn't you're going to wish you were dead once me and Zaku are done with you." He threatened her as she shivered, knowing what he was talking about. Finally, he turned his back and left, leaving her alone before a few tears laced her eyes.

"_Why... Why do I have to put up with this_" She screamed in her mind.

(Flashback -End)

After that, Kin tried to avoid their teammates at all costs, which she managed to do, to her surprise. As time passed, she got hungry and decided to visit the cafeteria, her sides and cheeks lightly bruised from the beating she got earlier. She would've gone to the infirmary, but she would've been questioned as to how she got her injuries while in the tower, which she knew she couldn't say in fear of her teammates.

Once she entered the cafeteria she saw that there was only one person sitting at a table. Exhausted and hungry, she picked up a lunch set and sat down next to them, not paying attention to who it was until it was too late. Quickly giving thanks for the meal, she opened her eyes and was about to dig in when she froze. Slowly craning her neck, her black eyes met navy colored ones.

Silence. Her hands started shaking slightly when she remembered what he did to her teammates. She wanted to run, to get as far away from this monster as she possibly could but she wasn't able to move a muscle, her fear froze her. She was broken out of her fear induced state when she heard him speak.

"...Where'd you get that bruise?" He asked, stunning her.

"_Wh-What...? H-He's asking me about my bruise?_" Dumbfounded by the question, she could only stare at him in a perplexed manner.

"...There's no way that you'd get a bruise like that in here unless someone else in here caused it." He said, making her freeze, his eyes narrowing slightly at her reaction.

"Wh-Why do you care? A-After what you did to my teammates, there's no way I'd tell someone like you!" She said, trying to look as indifferent as possible, though the tremble of her hand gave away her nervousness.

"...So your teammates did it huh?" At that, she widened her eyes and dropped her chopsticks.

"Wh-What? H-How?" She stuttered, now fear did root itself into her heart. Not from the blonde in front of her, but fear of teammates.

"You're too open. You're reactions to my questions told me pretty much everything." He said, slowly eating his ramen as she panicked.

"Please! Please don't tell them!" She begged, tears started to flow from her eyes as she pleaded with the blonde to not tell them. She knew that he didn't know what they'd do to her, he wouldn't care either.

She flinched however when he cupped her cheek, instantly making her quiet down. Feeling his hand on her cheek, Kin instantly turned pink, never having anyone do such a thing to her in her life. Never had she experienced someone place their hand on her cheek with such gentleness, usually they just backhanded or slapped her.

Before she could do anything, she felt the numb pain slowly fade, being replaced with a warm and comforting sensation that nearly made her moan in pleasure. After a few minutes of bliss, the feeling slowly faded, to her disappointment. But immediately after, she stared at the blonde in front of her in disbelief at what he just did. He not only cupped her cheek, he healed her.

"W-Why...?" She asked, genuinely curious about his actions.

"You're not like your teammates." Once those words left his mouth, her eyes widened. But before she could question him, he continued.

"When they were attacking Yakumo and Satsuki, you stayed behind. When they were being beaten into the ground, you didn't watch. They have disgusting and foul feeling chakra coursing through them while you... Your chakra feels conflicted and confused. You're lost aren't you?" Naruto said, turning slightly to face her.

Once she heard his words, without knowing herself, tears started to fall from her eyes.

"_How... How does he know...? I've never told anyone about how I feel, but how does he know what I really feel inside?_"

All her life, since she was picked up as an orphan by ninja under Hiruko's command, she never felt that she belonged. While others were killing and torturing others, she didn't. She never participated in any of the torture training that was mandated, opting to do something less disturbing like practice with her bells.

Never had she made a friend, a friend in Oto was simply someone who would work with you until you stopped being useful to them. She never had anyone to talk to, no one to confide to, and yet. How did this person, who shouldn't be treating her like this, know. She was broken out of her thoughts when she felt something brush against her face.

He was wiping away her tears.

"Why... Why are you acting like this to me?! Why are you treating me like this!? What do you want from me!?" She shouted as she stood up, her voice echoing in the empty dining room. Her eyes were snapped shut, trying to forget those beautiful blue eyes that looked at her with such concern in them.

Slowly she sat back down, tears still streaming down her face as her body shook slightly from crying. Soon, she felt a warm hand on the top of her head and looked up, sniffling as she wiped away the tears that fell from her eyes. Once again, she saw those blue eyes that captured her very soul looking at her.

"Someone important to me told me that when you see someone crying in front of you, even if you don't have the strength or any knowledge of their situation, to help them no matter what their circumstances are. I follow those words and keep them close to heart because... He did the same to me." Naruto said as she lowered her head, taking in the warm feeling of his hand.

After spending a few minutes in this position, Kin wiped away the last tears that she had in her eyes before she looked at him. Staring into his blue eyes, Kin couldn't help the blush that appeared on her face as she slowly leaned forward. As she neared his face, she closed her eyes, as she felt herself kissing something warm. Opening her eyes slightly, she snapped them wipe open when she saw that she had kissed his hand as he had a blank look on his face.

"What're you doing?" He asked in a flat tone, Kin turned and focused her attention to the floor, soon developing a burning blush on her cheeks from her unconscious action.

"Trying to kiss someone who's name you don't even know, it's a little odd." Naruto continued as she turned even more red, steam starting to come out of her ears. But before she could explode from the embarrassment, Naruto spoke once more.

"Well whatever, I'm Naruto." He said, introducing himself as she looked up, a bashful look on her face.

"K-Kin Tsuchi." She said in an embarrassed tone.

Finishing introductions, they started to talk about trivial things, Kin slowly losing the bashful expression she had as she started to smile and giggle more. Naruto had his same blank expression but there was a small smirk on his face when Kin told him about some of the embarrassing things that she witnessed in Oto.

As they talked, they never noticed that morning slowly turned into the afternoon. After spending a few hours talking with each other, Kin bid him a tearful farewell. Making him raise an eyebrow at her, she made it out like she was going to never see him again. But she gained a little more confidence when he reassured her that if she needs anything while still in Konoha, that he would try his best to help her. After he said that, she surprised him. Greatly.

Leaning in close and tiptoeing a little, Kin cupped his face and gave Naruto a long kiss on the cheek as he widened his eyes slightly as a bit of pink invaded his face. Slowly, she pulled away, a crimson blush and serene smile on her face.

"Wh-What? W-Why'd you do that?" He said stuttering slightly with his hand on the place where she kissed him, his usual cool and calm front cracked by her action.

"Because... I like you." She said with her eyes closed, a stunning smile on her now pink face.

Before Naruto could do anything, she quickly made her way out of the dining room, leaving a stunned Naruto behind, who futilely tried to analyze what just happened.

Unknown to them, there was someone who saw the whole exchange happen, an enraged look appearing on his face before he disappeared into the hallway.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Oh SNAP! Who is the 'Her' that Ryuuhei is talking about? Kin drew first blood!? Is she be 'The One'?! Who could be that mysterious person?! Haha, well what do you guys think! Be sure to tell me by dropping a review alright! And again, PM me if you have a suggestion for me alright! And as always, thanks for taking the time to read my story! Till next time, stay awesome people!<strong>

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><p><strong>Zankūha - Decapitating Airwaves<strong>: D-Rank, Ninjutsu; Using the air tubes implanted in his palms, Zaku can control the ratio of air pressure and sound via chakra. By propelling this combination, he can release supersonic blasts of air. These blasts are powerful enough to destroy stone, and can also be used to soften the ground.

**Fuinryuu Ougi: Ryuujin Gekirin Tentoubatsu - Dragon Sealing Secret Technique: Dragon God's Heavenly Subjection of Imperial Wrath**: S-Rank, Fuinjutsu; A forgotten technique taught to Ryuuhei by his parents with help from the elders. This sealing technique forcibly changes the construct of a seal no matter how powerful it is by using a piece of the caster's soul and life-force as a medium for entering the seal, allowing the user to physically reconstruct the seal. The drawback for this technique is that each time it is used, the caster loses a piece of their soul to the dragon that resides inside of them. If used enough the user will lose their soul entirely to the dragon, dying and allowing their inner dragon to take control. The other drawback is that it causes unbelievable pain to their target, enough that the shock of feeling such pain will have the possibility of killing the target. This is a powerful fuinjutsu that holds power over all other fuinjutsu, the last known user being Ryuuhei. It is unknown if he passed the secrets of this technique to Naruto.


	12. Chapter 11

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys it's me again! I really, really tried man. I did. But dang, I just wasn't feeling writing this chapter. I redid and rewrote it 3 times before just giving up. I hope you guys don't hate me for the lackluster quality that this chapter has. Once again, PM me if you have a suggestion or question alright? Let's a go... Please don't hate me.**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 11<p>

After seeing the scene of Kin kissing the blonde shinobi from Konoha, the jōnin sensei in charge of their team angrily left the scene. Had she forgotten what their mission was, they were supposed to infiltrate and weaken the defenses from the inside, but what did he find her doing instead? He found her locking lips with the enemy.

Cursing to himself, he knew that she was mostly likely going to be a liability now. Making a mental note to himself, he returned to his temporary quarters intent on relaying the piece of information to his lord.

Once he snapped out of the trance that Kin put him in with her kiss, he left the dining hall, his eyes still glazed over as the image of Kin's blushing face and smile remained on his mind before he shook his head to get rid of the memory.

Out of dining room, he made his way to the arena where they were going to meet in the morning; his mind going through the hundreds of scenarios that could possibly happen in the next few hours. However, he slowly found himself thinking about the incident that just happened once again. Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice the group of people who gawked and pouted at him, as he walked past without greeting any of them.

Before he reached the end of the hall, he was tackled from behind making him fall face first into the ground as a few shrill screams and shouts made it to his ears. Letting out a sigh, he immediately knew who tackled him from their smell and the few locks of blonde hair that were scattered around him. Pushing himself off the ground, he felt Narumi's arms wrapped tightly around his waist as her face was buried in his back.

"Narumi! You can't just tackle Naruto-niichan like that!" Mito shouted as her eye twitched, seeing her younger sister tackle her older brother for ignoring her.

"Hmph! This is what he gets for ignoring me!" She said in an angry tone, an angry pout matching her voice as she tightened her grip on her brother.

"Na-Narumi-chan, please let go of Naruto-kun! He can't get up if you keep clinging to him!" Hinata told her best friend, only for Narumi to stick her tongue out at her, not relinquishing her 'prize'.

Just as things were about to get more complicated, Naruto removed Narumi's hands from his waist, the way he did it stunning her. Usually, he would remove her hands in a slightly more forceful way, but this time she felt his hands wrap around hers as he gently opened her hands.

Feeling the warmth of his hands, she felt herself melt, immediately losing her ironclad grip. Once free, he didn't even turn around and scold her, he just continued walking with the same glazed look in his eyes.

But he was stopped once again, this time by Yakumo and Satsuki who grabbed each of his arms, having had enough of him ignoring all of them.

"Naruto! What are you doing! Are you just going to ignore us?!" Satsuki shouted, moving in front of him to face him, her hand wrapped around his wrist.

"Is there some reason why you're ignoring us Naruto?" Yakumo asked, though she mirrored Satsuki's actions, moving to stand in front of him.

Both had angry stares on her faces coupled with a small pout. But they quickly lost their anger when they saw that he was deep in thought. Tilting their heads, they let go of him and were about to question him when someone else did.

"What makes you think you can ignore us you loser!" Menma shouted, grabbing his older brother by the shoulder and forcibly turning him around as everyone tensed up, hoping that a fight didn't break out.

Though that thought dissolved when Naruto brushed off Menma's hand and turned around to headed back to his original destination. No one had believed what they just saw, Naruto would usually do the same thing but he always gave Menma a cold glare, this time he kept the dazed look from before.

Seeing as everyone froze, including his best friend, Kiba growled before he repeated the action, this time getting face to face with Naruto, as he was about to shout, he smelled something and immediately widened his eyes. Everyone looked on in curiosity when Kiba backed up and pointed an accusatory finger at Naruto while gawking.

"Y-Y-Y!" He stuttered, never being able to form a coherent word as everyone grew confused. Swallowing, he took a deep breath before he shouted at Naruto.

"WHY DO YOU HAVE THE SMELL OF A GIRL ON YOU!?" He shouted, not believing that he smelled the unfamiliar scent of a girl on the blonde.

At his statement the group grew quiet, so quiet a pin dropping could sound similar to an explosive tag going off. Slowly they craned their heads to stare at the blonde in front of him as he retained his dazed look and glazed over eyes.

Slowly, the group closed in on the older blonde, the guys with questioning and curious stares while the girls: Mito, Narumi, Satsuki, and Yakumo; had scary looks on their faces. Before he could do anything, they dog piled on the distracted blonde, the guys holding him down on the orders of the girls.

"So Kiba. Whose smell does it belong to?" Mito said in a scary sweet tone, a terrifying smile appearing on her face as the boys shivered in fear, Naruto excluded.

"I-I don't know! It's a foreign smell!" He said, as the others froze. A foreign smell? That could only mean a girl outside of Konoha.

"B-But that's not the only thing I smelled... I also smelled a lot of estrogen on him, which could only mean one thing..." He trailed off, jealously was burning in his eyes as they waited for him to finish.

"Just tell us dog breath!" Satsuki shouted, her sharingan blazing in anger and jealousy herself.

"It means that she marked him." He said as silence reigned over the group, everyone now being red in the face, be it jealousy, anger, or embarrassment.

Though, the anger and jealousy on the faces of four girls in particular could only be described as 'demonic' by the others. Slowly they reached out to grab Naruto by the collar but as they grabbed him by his shirt, he vanished, the discarded piece of clothing hanging limply in their now shaking hands.

Hearing footsteps, they snapped their heads around and saw him walking away, a black tank top on in place of his high collared sleeveless shirt. Without turning around, he left the now confused and fuming group behind.

(Time skip - The next day)

Avoiding all contact with the other ninja by sleeping outside and on the top of the tower, Naruto woke up in the same spot that he had slept, having lost the glazed look in his eyes from yesterday's event.

Knowing that he acted extremely different from his usual self, he sighed as he knew that the other's were most definitely still angry and suspicious of his behavior yesterday.

Pushing those thoughts to the back of his head, he stared into the cloudless sky, seeing a number of birds fly here and there as he waited for the announcement of the meeting that was scheduled for the morning; apparently there was an unexpected number of genin who passed, so there was going to be a preliminary that as going to be held.

Closing his eyes once again, he slowly took in the feeling of the nature around him, never noticing the scale like pigmentation that slowly started to appear around his eyes.

As a peaceful smile came on his face from the serene feeling of the world around him, he left as he heard a buzzer come from the PA announce the start of the meeting. The peaceful expression leaving his face, it was replaced with his normal blank face as he made his way to the meeting hall.

(Scene change - Central Tower: Meeting hall)

Gathered in a large room, with raised platforms on both sides secured with railings, a large pair of arms with their hands in the shape of the Ram seal, the remaining examinees stood in front of the Hokage, their jōnin sensei, a few other jōnin and chūnin as they waited for him to speak.

As Minato was about to begin, they silence of the room was broken with the soft sound of footsteps approaching. Everyone turning their heads to the direction of the noise, varying expressions appeared on the faces of the people present.

Knowing that he was a little late, Naruto didn't pay attention to the stares and opted to move to the where his teammates were standing, ignoring the piercing and burning glares that were being cast at him. Glancing quickly to the side, he saw Kin with her cheeks pink wearing a small smile on her face as she stared longingly at him, almost causing him to falter. Once in position, he turned and faced Minato, who gave him a smile in return.

Seeing all the examinees finally gathered, Minato motioned for Zabuza to address them as he nodded his head.

"First of all, I want to congratulate all of you for passing the second exam! Though, I didn't expect so many of you brats to actually make it." Zabuza said, making some of the genin shiver at his insinuation of having thought that they'd die in the forest.

"It's because there are so many of you that Hokage-sama decided to change up the exams a little this year. With that I'll give him the floor to explain it so you had better listen up!" He barked, making some of the genin stiffen up at his tone as Minato laughed wryly.

"Before I start with the explain of the upcoming event, I want to tell you all the real reason behind these exams." After the words left his mouth, the genin gained confused and curious looks, making Minato smile.

"I want you to know, without any sugar coating or lies, that this exam is here to promote and show off the prestige and power of each of the allied villages that are attending." Minato said in a stern tone, his eyes losing all traces of the kindness from earlier.

"W-What?! What the heck do you mean?! Isn't this just to see who has what it takes to be a chūnin?!" Menma shouted at his father as Kiba backed him up, getting sharp looks from their sensei in return.

"Of course that is correct as well, this exam tests all of you to see if you have the merit to be chūnin but there is also the reason that I was trying to explain earlier. In this exam, there will be many influential and powerful individuals that will give their assessment on all of you, to see if you meet the criteria needed to be a chūnin. Because of that, whoever makes their village stand out and shine more, will in turn bring more clients and in turn, missions to their village the opposite being true for those who muddle their village's name. I want you all to show that you can shine, no matter how small the village you came from!" At that, the genin gained determined looks on their faces as the listened to Minato's rallying speech.

"I want you all to know that the strength of a country is the strength of its village. And the strength of the village is the strength of its ninja! We can only gain such strength in times where we risk our very lives, as a ninja's true strength and worth is determined through life risking battles! With that, I'll explain what will happen with this event. We will be having a preliminary battles to reduce number of eligible number of candidates. Each battle will consist of two ninja chosen at random, which holds the possibility of having to battle your teammates." At that, everyone tensed and eyed each other.

"So, before we start. I want to let all of you know that from this point on, your team members no longer need to all pass their respective battles in order for you to advance. So, those of you who wish to drop out, please raise your hands." Once he asked, slowly, 8 genin rose their hands, looks of defeat and exhaustion filling their eyes.

Nodding his head Minato glanced around and quickly counted out the number of remaining genin. From the 11 teams and 33 genin that passed, 8 left.

Having finished with his explanation, Minato turned and gave the genin a clear view of the randomization panel. Nodding his head, it started flashing through the names of the genin present. Tensing, everyone watched the screen intently, seeing their own names flash for an instant before changing. Finally, the first pair of names were drawn.

"Choji vs. Kiba"

After making every clear the area, Minato gestured to Hayate who was going to proctor the battles. Once everyone was on the upper level of the room, Choji and Kiba made their way down to the floor.

"This will be interesting." Asuma said as Kurenai nodded in agreement.

"I mean no offense Asuma, but Kiba has the match in his favor." Kurenai said, a small smile on her face. Hearing that Asuma frowned.

"Hey Choji! If you win this match I'll take you out for all you can eat!" He shouted, as everyone else sweat dropped at his declaration.

"Yosh! Sorry Kiba, but I gotta win this buddy!" Choji said, fires of determination burning in his eyes as Kiba laughed.

"Whoa, hold your horses Choji! I hate to break your bubble but I'll be taking this one!" Kiba said in an excited tone of voice as Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Alright then, let the first match, begin!" Hayate declared, jumping back as the two mimicked the action.

"Let's get wild Choji!" Kiba shouted, pulling out and throwing a hail of shuriken at the other boy, who countered with his own hail of steel.

"You can bet on it Kiba!" Choji shouted as he and Kiba ran towards each other, Akamaru jumping out of his partner's jacket.

Meeting in the center of the arena, the echo of metal sounded out as the shuriken met, the two who threw them engaged in a battle of Taijutsu.

Once they met in the center of the ring, both lashed out with their fists, a hollow echo from the impact of their fists against each other. Quickly drawing his fist back, Choji took a step forward and slammed his shoulder into Kiba, putting the weight of his body into his attack, he sent Kiba flying a few meet back from the power of his blow.

Rolling back to his feet, Kiba tensed up in his crouched position before he exploded forward in an impressive show of speed, much faster then Choji could react to.

"_Fast!_" The word flew through Choji's mind, knowing that in terms of speed, he was outmatched considerably by his friend.

Appearing to the side of Choji, Kiba spun and swept his feet from underneath him, before lashing out with his fist which impacted Choji's stomach.

"Guh!" Choji stifled the cry of pain that he had, placing his hand over his stomach as Kiba rubbed his shoulder from where Choji's shoulder had impacted from earlier.

"You've gotten a lot stronger Choji!" Kiba said, flashing a feral grin at the larger boy getting a smile in return.

"Yeah, you're a lot stronger then you were in the academy Kiba!" Choji replied before settling back into a stance, Kiba doing the same.

The collided once again, Choji landing a powerful palm strike on Kiba's chest, sending him back while forcing the air out of his lungs. Not easing on his assault, he continued, driving a powerful knee into his friends stomach. But he wasn't able to fully connect his attack as Kiba sidestepped at the last second, and returned Choji's attack with a straight that connected to his jaw, rattling his head slightly.

Backing away from each other, they winced as they felt their injuries. Still not funny recovered from the forest, they knew that they wouldn't last long if things continued.

"Because we're friends, I'm not going to hold back Kiba!" He yelled, before making a hand sign that was recognized by his peers.

"**Baika no Jutsu**!" He shouted, as he expanded his body into a larger, rounder shape resembling a large ball.

"Oh shit! Akamaru!" Kiba shouted. Knowing what his friend was going to do, he called Akamaru onto his back as he crouched down, called out a jutsu that was also known by his peers.

"**Shikyaku no Jutsu**! **Jūjin Bunshin**!" As a cloud of smoke covered Akamaru, in his place another Kiba stood crouched on top of the original.

Tensing, they gave each other a grin before they attacked.

"**Nikudan Sensha**!"

"**Gatsūga**!"

As Choji started tucked in his limbs and used his chakra to propel himself forward in a powerful roll. With Choji advancing, Kiba and Akamaru spun with such speed that they resembled a drill as they wrapped around each other before meeting Choji's attack head on. The result of the two attacks colliding being a small explosion of dust and rubble, as their sensei looked on with concern.

The smoke starting to clear, they saw that both Choji and Kiba were still standing, though Akamaru was laying limply at the side.

"Ha, ha... Looks like that's game huh Choji?" Kiba asked, panting as he gave his friend another smile.

"Ye-Yeah, looks that way Kiba." Choji said, returning the smile.

Soon, the two started to sway before they hit the ground, as Hayate signaled the medics.

"For the first match, it's a draw!" He said loudly, before coughing slightly as everyone looked on with stunned expressions from the result of the battle.

After the battle that Choji and Kiba had, Hayate turned and motioned for the next randomization to begin.

"Sakura vs. Ino"

At that, practically everyone sighed, somehow they weren't surprised at the matchup.

Making their way down to the floor, Sakura and Ino both had smug looks on their faces as they faced each other. Looking at both girls, Hayate nodded before he commenced the start of the second match.

"You're going down Forehead!"

"You're mincemeat Ino-Pig!"

They shouted as they rushed each other, making their sensei sigh at their recklessness.

Sticking to the basic academy taught taijutsu, the match wasn't very interesting as they were able to block and counter each other, being so familiar with the style and the habits of their opponent.

Seeing as the match was going nowhere, Ino broke off and threw a volley shuriken at Sakura, who responded by using a smoke bomb to conceal herself, the shuriken flying out of the cloud having missed their intended target. As the cloud started to disperse, three Sakura ran out of the cloud, to Ino's shock. Quickly snapping herself out of her stupor, she narrowed her eyes as she wasn't able to determine which were the clones and which was the original.

Cursing under her breath, she threw a volley of kunai that instantly was avoided by the Sakura on the right. Smirking, Ino rushed forward as Sakura righted herself and repeated the action. Engaging once again in a taijutsu bout. Slowly, they began to run out of energy, their movements becoming much more sluggish signaling that the end was approaching as they broke off from each other.

Taking in a deep breath, Ino held her hands out in front of her as Sakura gasped, knowing what she was going to do. But before she could dodge, Ino had already locked onto her.

"**Shintenshin no Jutsu**!" Ino shouted as Sakura and her body slumped to the ground, showing that her jutsu was indeed a success.

Slowly, Sakura stood up a smirk on her face. Turning to Hayate, she began to raise her hand to show that she was giving up, but halfway she froze and grabbed at her head.

"_W-What!? What's happening!?_" Ino shouted, looking around Sakura's mind, and froze when she saw a giant version of Sakura with burning eyes staring at her.

"_INO-PIG! YOU'RE NOT MAKING ME GIVE UP THAT EASILY!_" She shouted, her fist colliding with Ino, and in turn forcing her out of her mind.

"My head..." Ino moaned, massaging her temples from the rough ejection that she just had.

"Not so tough are you Ino-Pig!" Sakura sneered, as Ino gained a number of tick marks on her head.

Finally, they decided to end the duel, each rushing in with their fists cocked back. Slowly, they neared each other let their punches go, colliding with the cheek of the other. Once they connected, they were sent flying back from the momentum gained from the running start, where they laid motionless.

Looking at both of them, Hayate nodded before raising his hand.

"The second match, ends in a draw." He said, as Asuma and Genma picked up their genin, and brought them to the balcony. Where their peers peeked at them, wondering if they were alright.

"They'll be fine, they're probably just a little rattled right now." Asuma said as Genma nodded, extinguishing the worries that they held.

As the battle ended and they were picked up, the screen flashed once again, this time landing on two very different people.

"Shikamaru vs. Sai"

At that Shikamaru groaned while Sai looked like he was contemplating something, suddenly as they were about to walk towards the ground floor, Sai raised his hand.

"Proctor, I'd like to forfeit." Making everyone drop their jaws at the proclamation.

"Why're you dropping out Sai?" Genma said, an accusatory glint in his eyes that didn't seem to faze Sai as he gave the same fake smile as always.

"No reason in particular, I'm just not confident that I can take out Lazy." He answered, making Genma look at him for a while before nodding slowly.

Getting the confirmation from Genma, Hayate announced the winner.

"The third match, Winner by forfeit is Shikamaru." As everyone sweat dropped at the victory as Shikamaru just sighed.

After that was all settled, the screen flashed once again.

"Kankuro vs. Yasou"

At that, Kankuro and the last remaining Kusa-nin made their way down to the floor.

Seeing both were ready to start, Hayate signaled the start of the battle, Yasou going on the offensive with a hail of shuriken that Kankuro aptly dodged.

"You really should give up before I hurt you." Yasou said, pulling out a handful of senbon as Kankuro sneered at him.

"Like you're in a position to do that!" Yasou shouted seeing the overconfidence that seemed to ooze out of the other teen.

Throwing his senbon, he was stunned when Kankuro made no effort to dodge, opting to get hit by the attack. But after being stunned, he became fearful as Kankuro's face started to chip and flake off, revealing a frightening visage.

Jumping back, he was met with the now revealed puppet as it quickly appeared next to him.

"W-What!?" Yasou shouted, as the puppet grabbed him and proceeded to crush him slowly.

"You should give up now, if you do I won't crush you." A voice called out, soon to be revealed to be Kankuro who appeared out of the bandaged sack on the floor.

"Guh! G-Go to h-hell." Yasou wheezed out, glaring at the other teen.

Sighing, Kankuro tightened the grip that Crow had on him, knocking him out by cutting off his air. As Crow released the boy, letting him drop to the floor as it made its way back to Kankuro.

Quickly checking if he was alive, Hayate nodded as he motioned for the medics to tend to the boy.

"Winner of the match, Kankuro." Hayate said as he made his way back to the stands, getting nervous looks from the other genin at winning with a minimal show skill.

After the short battle, the battles continued on, while most were even there were a few that were notable.

The battle between Tenten and Temari was a one-sided bout, Tenten began the match by throwing a few of her weapons at Temari while keeping the best distance for offence and defense. Though Temari easily blew the weapons away with her fan. Everyone, especially her teammates, were surprised that not one weapon reached Temari. Since nothing had even come close to hitting Temari, Tenten used one final technique that she said she was saving for the finals.

Her **Sōshōryū **was powerful, but ultimately ineffective against Temari's fan. As Tenten ran out of weapons, she used strings to control the weapons and fling them once again back at Temari, in an attempt to surprise her. Temari however quickly used her fan to blast Tenten, along with her weapons and she hit the floor. Temari finally used her fan to trap Tenten in a cyclone and propel her into the air.

As the cyclone dispersed and Tenten fell to the ground, Temari had Tenten land on her closed fan, knocking her unconscious and calling the match she just had boring. Even after she was declared the winner of the match, she threw Tenten off of the fan in attempt to have her land on the many weapons on the ground to injure her more. However, Lee jumped in to save Tenten before she hit the ground.

After that, Lee attacked Temari after she told them about how weak she was and the latter responded by blocking and calling them weak. Just as he was about to attack once more, Gai stepped in and stopped Lee from doing so. After, he told the last remaining member of the Suna team, Gaara, that if he were to fight Lee he would be in for a tough time, stating that Lee was 'strong'.

Once they made their way back to the stands, Hinata and Neji were the next to battle. While both sides received words of encouragement, Neji told his cousin that it was a futile battle that she was about to have with him. Though he didn't resent her, he did resent the fact that his uncle was made the clan head while his father was pushed into the branch family.

Signaling the start of the battle, both rushed each other, and at first it seemed even. But eventually, Neji started to wear Hinata down, managing to strike her shoulder and leg, disabling them just long enough to land a damaging palm strike to her chest. Hinata however, even after receiving the damaging attack, stated that she could continue which Neji shook his head at, saying that it was fated that he would win this match and she would lose.

This was proven true when Neji managed to land another palm strike to the same area that he struck before, causing Hinata to spit out a mouthful of blood to the horror of everyone present. Catching his cousin, he laid her on the ground and gave her a look of pity, shaking his head while walking away as the medics tended to her. Angrily, Narumi demanded why he damaged her so much when he knew he was stronger then her. Without turning around, Neji told her that it was fated to happen, that her weakness isn't something that she could change no matter how much she trained, causing Narumi to lunge at him while Kakashi and Mito held her back.

After that, it matches turned up a notch when Lee and Gaara were selected to battle. At first Lee wasn't able to land a clean hit on Gaara, his sand acting as a shield that protected him for all of Lee's attacks no matter how fast or what angle that it came from.

When his standard attacks proved unable to bypass Gaara's defenses, with permission from Gai, he removed his ankle weights to increase his speed and managed to land a couple of hits on Gaara. Then, he attempted the **Omote Renge**, but Gaara was able to escape at the last minute revealing a sand clone instead.

Once he used his **Omote Renge**, Lee was able to use and open the first few gates of the **Hachimon**, allowing him to stage a comeback against Gaara whose sand wasn't able to keep up with his increased speed, actually managing to land a damaging punch which sent Gaara flying to the shock of everyone present. But soon, he started to slow down once the side effects of the opening the **Hachimon** started to affect his body.

His options running out if he was to win and prove himself, Gai allowed him to use the **Ura Renge**. Gaara barely survived by turning his gourd to sand to cushion him, and the techniques took a massive toll on Lee's body. Gaara added to Lee's injury by used his **Sabaku Kyū** to trap his arm and leg, then proceeded to crush his left arm and leg with his **Sabaku Sōsō**.

Though Gai intervened and stopped Gaara from killing him, though to the shock of everyone present, Lee got to his feet to continue the battle despite being completely unconscious. Seeing that Hayate called the match there, knowing that Lee was in no shape to continue no matter how much determination he displayed.

Once the two were off the arena, Minato motioned for a few of the jōnin to mend the ruined arena, using a collaboration **Heiban Tataki**, they quickly flattened and fixed the once ruined arena.

Seeing the power that he had, when he was only a year older then them, the other genin couldn't help but shiver slightly knowing that they would've been crushed had they fought Lee. But they also let out a few breaths of relief as the strongest were finished with their battles.

The screen flashed once again, displaying Kin and Narumi's names.

Making their way to the floor, Narumi narrowed her eyes at the Oto-nin, remembering what her team did to her older brother on the first day of the exam. Kin on the other hand knew that she had some relation to her Naruto, and wanted to prove herself to him.

Signaling the start of the match, Narumi intended to end this as soon as possible. Quickly making the signature cross shaped hand seal that her and her siblings had become affiliated with, she create a few **Kage Bunshin** that immediately rushed to take Kin down.

Stunned from seeing actual and physical clones, Kin panicked but steeled her resolve throwing a handful of senbon that hit the clones in their necks, causing them to dispel upon being hit. Not letting up after seeing her clones dispelled, Narumi quickly rushed towards Kin, dropping low and sweeping her feet from underneath her.

Quickly spinning, Kin managed to throw another handful of senbon at Narumi who sidestepped but widened her eyes when she felt the pain of being hit. Glancing down, she saw the senbon that she knew she dodged lodged in her side. Yanking it out, she stepped back when Kin threw another handful of senbon, a ringing echoing out when they hit the ground.

Hearing the noise, Narumi winced as she shook her head trying to get rid of the ringing that filled her ears. Seeing that her **Harikane Meimu **worked, Kin was about to advance but the Narumi in front of her dispersed in a cloud of smoke as the real Narumi gave Kin a devastating punch that sent her to the wall, her head impacting it with a hollow sound echoing out.

Hayate checking on the downed Kin signaled the medics to take care of her. Seeing that her opponent wasn't going to get up, Narumi flashed the victory sign at her father and sibling who laughed wryly.

After she made her way to the stands, she immediately clung to her older brother to the ire of some of the people there, namely the boy in question, as she badgered him about if he saw her or not. Sighing to himself, he didn't attempt to remove his sister, more preoccupied about the next contestants seeing as he was one of them. Watching the screen flash once more, the names of the next competitors came on.

But as Sasuke was about to head down, Shino raised his hand to signal that he was forfeiting to the shock of everyone present.

"Shino, why are you forfeiting?" Kurenai asked, really curious of the reason her normally stoic and logical student had.

"Sasuke-san specializes in Katon jutsu while I only have my kikaichū to rely on. Because of that alone, I am already at a disadvantage because he can burn away my kikaichū. Adding to that, he is much more skilled then I am at taijutsu. But above all else, I would like to avoid having my kikaichū perish unnecessarily." Shino said, making most of the people there nod their heads at the points he brought up.

Nodding to Hayate, Kurenai signaled that he was indeed forfeiting as Hayate declared Sasuke the winner, who had a large smirk on his face. Though it fell and became a frown when he noticed that a certain crimson haired girl wasn't paying any attention to him and instead directed all of her attention to her older brother.

Once the next pair of names came on, there were three people who darkened considerably, releasing a surprisingly potent amount of killing intent. These three were none other then the members of Team 12.

"Yakumo vs. Zaku"

Seeing the name of the Oto-nin who ambushed them, they were filled with rage and anger.

Zaku made his way down to the floor first, sneering at them as he waited for Yakumo.

"What? Don't tell me you're still scared of me?" He said in a condescending tone, making them burn even more with rage.

As Yakumo was about to head down, she was stopped by her teammates.

"Make him pay what he did Yakumo."

"End him."

A smirk appearing on her face from the words of 'encouragement' that she got from her teammates, she dropped down to face Zaku who flinched a little seeing her eyes sharpen.

Glancing at both of them, Hayate nodded before signaling the start of the next match.

Instantly, Zaku held out his arms as he shouted at her.

"Ha! You should've done more then what you did to my arms you bastards! **Zankūha**!" He shouted as he fired off another powerful blast of air at Yakumo that exploded the moment it hit the ground, dust and rubble flying from the attack.

Smirking, he brought his hands down as he knew he ended her. But then he noticed that she wasn't there, about to look around he wasn't able to as Yakumo buried her fist into his stomach, forcing the air out of his lungs.

Not letting him get any ground, Yakumo spun on her heel and smashed her other one into his face, breaking his nose and sending him stumbling backwards. Sprinting, she jumped and smashed her knee into his face, knocking a few of his front teeth out, sending him to the ground. As he hit the ground, she spun in the air and finished her assault by smashing her heel into his head, a hollow crack echoing from the attack. Standing up with a cold look on her face, she glared at him as he laid out cold from her ruthless assault.

Turning her head towards Hayate who was stunned at how quickly and brutally she disposed of him, he snapped out of his stupor and quickly called her the winner as she made her way back to her team.

"You should've picked him apart more Yakumo."

"Tsk, should've crippled him."

Satsuki and Naruto said as she returned, each having a small smirk on their faces from the efficient way she took him down.

Their actions caused the other genin to shiver a little, hearing that they wanted him to suffer more then he did, that alone changed the way that they viewed the team.

Once Zaku was carted off the arena, the screen flashed again, landing on two very volatile individuals.

"Satsuki vs. Menma"

The tension that filled the air after seeing those names was thick, Menma and Satsuki casting a glare at the other.

Quietly they made their way down to the arena floor as everyone looked on in apprehension, knowing that it would be an explosive fight.

Seeing that both were ready, Hayate signaled the start of the battle and instantly, they clashed together, kunai in hand.

"Tsk." Satsuki said as Menma slowly started to overpower her, shifting her body slightly, she threw Menma off as he stumbled forward from the sudden loss of opposing force keeping him steady.

"Damn!" He shouted, blocking a kick from Satsuki and responding with a spinning back fist which she ducked under. Crouching low, she spun and smashed her heel into his side as he took the brunt of the blow and grabbed her leg, making her eyes widen.

Kicking the other foot out from underneath her, he slammed her into the ground, Satsuki crying out in pain from the force that she hit the ground with. Her eyes widened when Menma buried his fist into her stomach, before she grit her teeth and struck him at his knee joint, her heel hooking around the bend of the joint and bringing him down.

Taking the opportunity, she rolled away as he regained his balance. Rubbing her stomach to ease the pain she winced when her back felt as stiff as a board. Menma on the other hand rubbed his knee, having hit the ground hard when Satsuki knocked his balance off.

Standing up, Satsuki got serious as she activated her sharingan, making everyone widen their eyes while Sasuke growled. Narrowing them at her opponent, she charged in once again and blocked Menma blow for blow, making his eyes widen in shock. Finally, she broke his guard and landed a clean blow on his cheek, sending him stumbling backwards. Not letting up, she charged at him and jumped, in an attempt to hit him with the same style high kick that Lee had used earlier.

She was stunned however when Menma once again took the blow, and grabbed her leg, this time turning and using the momentum behind the kick to slam her once again into the ground as Satsuki cried out in pain, feeling something snap on her arm. But Menma didn't let up his assault now that he had the advantage as he dropped his knee onto the same spot he had hit her earlier, making her cry out once again in pain. As he was about to punch her, she moved her head to the side as Menma cried out in pain, having hit the hard floor of the arena. Taking advantage of her situation, Satsuki lashed out and landed a palm strike to his chest, making him get off her.

Rolling backwards, Satsuki flashed through a series of seals before locking onto Menma.

"**Suiton: Teppōdama**!" She shouted, firing a volley of high speed water bullets at a stunned Menma.

He rolled to the side, but immediately cried out in pain as one of the bullets impacted against his thigh, as he tried to put the pressure off his now injured leg. Glaring at Satsuki, who now looked exhausted having kept her sharingan on for so long, Menma flashed through his own set of seal as Satsuki copied the sequence, much to his distain.

"**Futon: Daitoppa**!" He shouted, pouring an insane amount of chakra into his jutsu, the resulting wind sending Satsuki flying to the opposite side of the wall, as she cried out in pain from the impact. But Menma didn't end his assault there, making the signature seal of the **Kage Bunshin**, Menma made a clone who started flashing through a set of seals along with him as Satsuki weakly started to stand up, her sharingan replaced with her regular onyx eyes.

As she managed to find the strength to stand, both Menma and his clone had finished their seals.

"**Futon: Daitoppa**!"

"**Katon: Endan**!"

The adults widened their eyes at the potentially fatal combination that Menma had used and were about to intercept the jutsu but two people beat them to it.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa**!"

"**Futon: Senpūken**!"

The combined jutsu of Yakumo and Naruto instantly quelled the ranging inferno that was about to consume Satsuki, a large cloud of steam instantly covering the arena. Once it was cleared, everyone immediately felt an even more immense amount of killing intent from Yakumo and Naruto, their aura taking shape behind them, as Menma unconsciously took a step back from the two seeing the Ido and the dragon.

But they didn't act like they were expected to, opting to cast him one more glare before rushing to their downed teammate, supporting her gently as Yakumo immediately started healing her. Standing up, Naruto looked at Hayate and nodded. Knowing what he meant, Hayate signaled that Menma had won.

Once Satsuki was carted away by the medics, Yakumo and Naruto stared at the doors that she left through. Slowly they made their way back to the stands, as everyone gave them a wide berth, fear creeping into their hearts from the subtle yet frightening killing intent oozing off of them.

But it quickly ended when the screen showed the next combatants.

"Mito vs. Issui"

Issui, the only remaining ninja from Ame raised his hand as he forfeited, not wanting to face Mito after seeing what her family had done. Hayate nodded as he acknowledged Mito at the winner.

As they made it back the screen flashed and showcased the final combatants.

"Naruto vs. Dosu"

Looking at the screen, Naruto jumped down to the floor of the arena as Dosu slowly made his way down. On the floor, Naruto and Dosu stood, one blank faced but subtly angry the other visibly nervous.

Looking at the two, Hayate signaled for them to begin.

Dosu jumped back to get some distance from Naruto but he widened his eyes when he bumped into someone, without turning around he knew who it was. Before he could get away, pain exploded from his back, Naruto having buried his fist with tremendous power into it.

As he was lifted slightly into the air from the force of the blow, Naruto simply brought his foot up and slammed it into his head, sending him crashing into the ground. After removing his foot, a small amount of blood started to pool around Dosu's head as Hayate quickly called the end of the match signaling the medics to take care of the bleeding.

Slowly, Naruto made his way back to stands as everyone stared at him with a mix of shock and fear, it took him less then 30 seconds to crush the same person who brought him to his knees at the start of the exam.

Once everyone was taken care of, Minato called the end of the preliminaries, gathering all the genin who won their matches.

Standing in front of him was: Temari, Shikamaru, Sasuke, Gaara, Narumi, Mito, Menma, Neji, Kankuro, Yakumo, and Naruto.

"Congratulations for making it through the preliminaries you all! Now however, we will be drawing for who you will be battling in the finals which will take place 1 month from now. So please, come forward and draw." Minato said, as he gestured towards a box with the names of all those present in it.

One by one, they approached the box and drew, finally the pairing was complete. In order, it was as followed: Temari vs. Shikamaru, Narumi vs. Neji, Gaara vs. Kankuro, Mito vs. Yakumo, and the final match was Sasuke vs. Menma vs. Naruto. Everyone was stunned by the final match, Menma and Sasuke gulped slightly and widened their eyes when they saw Naruto's eyes flash electric blue for a second.

Finally, the preliminaries were finished as Minato dismissed them all, reminding them that in 1 month the finals would take place.

"Once again everyone, the finals will take place in 1 month's time so take the month to train and polish up your skills before you face your next opponent!" Minato said, finally dismissing the genin.

(Scene change - Infirmary)

After they were dismissed, Yakumo and Naruto immediately made their way to the infirmary with the rest of the genin minus the Suna-nin. Arriving they saw that everyone minus Zaku, Dosu and Yasou were wide awake and startled when they saw the large group.

"Satsuki!" Yakumo shouted, running to her best friend and fretted over her as everyone laughed at the scene.

"I'm fine Yakumo, just a little banged up." She said, wincing slightly from moving her arm which had a fracture in it.

As everyone was catching up with their teammates and friends, Naruto saw Kin sneaking glances at him. Once he locked eyes with her, she quickly adverted her gaze. Shaking his head slightly, Naruto made his way over to her as everyone quieted and looked at him. Assuming that he was going to hurt her, they were about to stop him but froze when he stopped by her bed and leaned a little closer before speaking.

"You alright Kin?" He asked, tilting his head slightly as she blushed and looked at her sheets.

"I-I'm fine Naruto-kun. Just a little sore is all." She said in a bashful tone as she timidly raised her head to stare at him with eye full of adoration.

Everyone dropped their jaws at the scene, as the Minato along with the jōnin sensei, Zabuza, Anko, Tsunade, Shizune and Haku, who was working as one of the medical staff, entered the room curious as to what was going on. But before they could ask, Kin slowly rose a little and kissed Naruto once again, planting a kiss on his other cheek as he froze, his eyes wide open.

Seeing what just happened they got their answer. Haku dropping her tray of medical equipment as her hands startled trembling, a devastated look on her now shocked and angry face. Yakumo, Mito, and Narumi felt their souls leave their bodies as they paled. Satsuki looked like she could pass out at any moment, horror etched onto her face. For the other genin, they resembled fishes with the way they opened and closed their mouths.

The adults looked confused and shocked as well. Minato couldn't believe what just happened, his son, the blank and cold Naruto, just got kissed and by a cute foreign girl no less. Tsunade gave a worried look at her now pale student. Anko a look of bewilderment on her face, trying to speak but unable to form words. Zabuza looked like he was going to kill, having seen the devastated look on his daughter's face.

And Shizune gained a blank look in her eyes as the world seemed to lose all traces of color and sound.

"W-What? Why'd you do that?" Naruto asked, standing straight again as he put a hand to his now pink cheek. Kin just smiled at the question, tilting her head in a cute way before answering.

"Don't you remember? Because I like you Naruto-kin." Kin said, a crimson blush and a serene smile on her face.

But before anyone else could speak or do anything Kiba shouted and pointed his finger at Kin.

"IT WAS YOU! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO MARKED HIM!" He screamed, jealousy burning in his eyes as everyone quieted at the new piece of information.

Looking at the now quiet group, Kin looked back at Naruto and tilted her head in a cute manner before speaking.

"Ara?"

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Yay, done. I'm so sorry guys! Please don't hate me! I did, I tried my best but writing these fight scenes were so brutal! So yeah, send me all your hate and stuff, I deserve me. TT-TT PM me maybe? Ok, it's fine if you don't want to.<strong>

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><p><strong>Baika no Jutsu - Multi-Size Technique<strong>: D-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user can freely alter their size at will when using this technique, and can use it for an extensive period of time. A common application of the techniques gives the user a very round appearance by mostly increasing the size of the abdominal section, which is done in order to use the **Nikudan Sensha no Jutsu**. Other, more common applications increase the size of the entire body, turning the user into a giant.

**Shikyaku no Jutsu - Four Legs Technique**: D-Rank, Ninjutsu; This technique grants animal-like accelerated fighting instinct and reflexes to the user. By enveloping their entire body in chakra and moving on all fours, they can obtain high speed movement and reflexes like that of a wild animal. Taught only to the members of the Inuzuka clan, this technique forms the basis of a Inuzuka clan member's taijutsu fighting style, and will add even more to their feral-like appearances; their canine teeth, their finger and toenails grow to claw-like length, their eyes also become more wild with their pupils becoming slits.

**Jūjin Bunshin - Beast Human Clone**: D-Rank, Ninjutsu; It allows a canine-user to transform their animal companion into a perfect copy of themselves. When combined with the** Shikyaku no Jutsu**, the user and the animal become virtually impossible to tell apart, since both act equally feral. Like any transformation, the technique can be broken by identifying and attacking the animal, thus dispelling the transformation.

**Nikudan Sensha - Human Bullet Tank**: C-Rank, Taijutsu; A threatening taijutsu trick that converts the users large frame into a destructive weapon. The user first uses the **Baika no Jutsu **to make themselves into a human-sized ball, then they tuck in their limbs and use chakra to propel themselves into a powerful roll. Its effective use of weight and the force of rotation make for an even greater lethality than appearances would let on, enough to pulverize someone's hand with but a mere touch.

**Gatsūga - Fang Passing Fang**: C-Rank, Taijutsu; The user and their ninken partner spin at a ferocious speed and deliver many powerful beast-like attacks when contact is made with the target. The force of this attack is strong enough to drill through stone.

**Shintenshin no Jutsu - Mind Body Switch Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The signature jutsu of the Yamanaka clan. Originally, this ninjutsu was suited for intelligence-gathering missions rather than battle. With it, a ninja sends his mind as spiritual energy into a target's body supplanting the target's mind with their own. The user transfers their consciousness to the target, giving them complete control of the body for a short period of time. While in control of the body, the user is able to communicate with the target. Since the user is in another body, they are also able to use that body's chakra. It is also possible for the user to switch bodies with the target. This has great strategic value when used on a team-mate as neither body is left incapacitated and they may also make use of the user's abilities as well as their own while doing this. To remain inconspicuous when spying, the user can perform this technique on an animal, such as a hawk, which they can use to do aerial reconnaissance. It is generally used on immobilized targets.

**Sōshōryū - Twin Rising Dragons**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; A technique unique to Tenten that takes advantage of her superior skills with weapons. First, she places two small scrolls in an upright position on the floor. When activated, the two scrolls release smoke while also flying and spinning into the air in the shape of two dragons made of smoke. Tenten then jumps between the two scrolls, and starts to rapidly summon and throw all sorts of weaponry as a powerful projectile barrage. If the initial attack were to fail, she can control the discarded weapons with wires attached to her fingertips for a surprise attack. However, because the weapons are thrown, they are easily countered by Futon Jutsu.

**Hachimon - Eight Gates**: A-Rank, Kinjutsu; The Eight Gates are eight specific tenketsu on a person's Chakra Pathway System. They limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body. The basis for the idea of the chakra gates comes from the body's limits on the functions within it. This makes the body much weaker, but it keeps the body from expiring too soon. By undergoing intense training, one can learn how to open these gates allowing the user to surpass their own physical limits at the cost of extreme damage to their own body.

**Omote Renge - Front Lotus**: B-Rank, Taijutsu; The Front Lotus requires the opening of the first of the **Hachimon**, giving the user five times their normal strength. The user kicks their opponent into the air and then uses **Kage Buyō**. Once behind their opponent, the user restrains them and pile-drives them into the ground head first while rotating at a ferocious speed. Due to the use of one of the **Hachimon**, the user is left extremely fatigued, making this technique a "double-edged sword". It may also be used on multiple people at once.

**Ura Renge - Reverse Lotus**: A-Rank, Taijutsu, Kinjutsu; This technique is an advanced and more destructive version of the **Omote Renge**, which requires that at least three of the **Hachimon** be opened. Once enough gates are opened, the user kicks the target into the air and continues to strike them at inhuman speeds before hitting them with a final, powerful open-handed strike and kick at the same time, sending the target crashing into the ground which is usually fatal due to the speed and power behind the attack. Because so many chakra gates are opened at once, this technique can only be used once, since the user will likely be unable to stand afterwards.

**Sabaku Kyū - Sand Binding Coffin**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; With his ability to control sand, Gaara encases his opponents in a large amount of the special chakra-infused sand kept inside his gourd, immobilizing them. It can be used to suffocate an opponent or in preparation for a deadlier technique, the **Sabaku Sōsō**. This appears to be Gaara's signature technique.

**Sabaku Sōsō - Sand Waterfall Funeral**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; Once trapping his opponent in his sand, Gaara will cause the sand to implode and crush whatever is within it. According to Gaara, when used to kill a person, the death is so quick that there isn't even time for the victim to feel any pain. The pressure also produces a sizeable fountain of blood. Gaara can control the pressure used in the attack, which allows him to either break bones or completely liquefy an opponent.

**Doton: Heitan Tataki - Earth Release: Flat Concrete Floor**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; By molding chakra into their hands, the user slams their on the ground and sends a pulse of chakra out that flattens the area targeted by the user. The more chakra that is used causes the range and intensity of the jutsu to increase.

**Harikane Meimu - Needle Bell Illusion**: C-Rank Genjutsu, Ninjutsu; Kin uses this technique with the bells that she attaches to her senbon. The bells' ringing produces a particular sound wave, which travels from the inner ear directly to affect the brain. This causes her target to hallucinate, seeing multiple images of her, and making very hard to tell the real one from the illusions. Additionally, the target loses their motor skills with continued exposure to the ringing.

**Zankūha - Decapitating Airwaves**: D-Rank, Ninjutsu; Using the air tubes implanted in his palms, Zaku can control the ratio of air pressure and sound via chakra. By propelling this combination, he can release supersonic blasts of air. These blasts are powerful enough to destroy stone, and can also be used to soften the ground.

**Suiton: Teppōdama - Water Release: Gunshot**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user kneads and converts chakra in their mouth into to water and fires it. The size, number, power and speed of the water balls are based on how much chakra is used in the jutsu. It can be strengthened by various different means such as gravity and introducing another element.

**Futon: Daitoppa - Wind Release: Great Breakthrough**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; This is a relatively simple technique that creates a sudden gust of wind, but its scale varies greatly depending on the user. If used by a superior shinobi, it has enough destructive power to knock down a large tree. The wind from the squall can blow away all things in the user's line of sight. Adding it to katon jutsu can increase the power of said jutsu

**Katon: Endan - Fire Release: Flame Bullet**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user kneads chakra into their mouth then fires a simple flame bullet at their target. The size and range is dependent on the amount of chakra used. It can be combined with futon jutsu to increase it's power.

**Suiton: Mizurappa - Water Release: Wild Water Wave**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user molds chakra in their mouths into water and fires a stream of condensed water at their target. The range, speed, and power is dependent on how much chakra is used. Can be strengthened by various different means such as introducing another element.

**Futon: Senpūken - Wind Release: Whirlwind Fist**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user gathers chakra into their fist and fires out a whirlwind, which the size and scale of is dependent on the amount of chakra that is used. It can adapt to increase the size, range, and power of many different elements including katon and suiton jutsu.


	13. Chapter 12

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey there guys, it's me again. This chapter nothing much happening, a little bit of drama, comedy, and action but it's nothing major. Finals are coming up and I've accepted the fact that Calc and Chem are going to be failures. Haha, well anyway enough moping around. But yeah, 100K benchmark, pretty sweet right! Anyways, PM me if you have suggestions or questions alright? Let's get to reading, let's a go!**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 12<p>

(Scene change - Naruto's training ground)

His eyes closed, in a lotus position, Naruto was sitting on the surface of the lake of his special training ground. Right now, his mind was going through what happened in the past few hours, releasing a sigh as he remembered the rather frightening aftermath of Kin's second kiss.

(Flash back - A few hours earlier)

Silence. After Kin kissed Naruto for the second time and Kiba shouted that it was her that 'marked' him, there was complete utter silence. However it was soon broken when Narumi and Mito unleashed a surprising amount of killing intent, so much so that everyone flinched when they felt it. But as if it couldn't get any worse for Naruto, Kin, who had been the target for said killing intent, latched on to him and buried her face into his stomach as everyone let their jaws drop even more.

"L-Let go of him already!" Mito shouted, having had enough of the Oto-kunoichi hugging her brother.

Running over, she grabbed Naruto's arm and started to yank him away from Kin, who widened her eyes before she narrowed them, tightening her grip on the blonde. Feeling a little resistance, Mito slowly craned her neck around and locked gazes with Kin, her cerulean eyes glaring at Kin's black eyes who glared back. The situation instantly turned more tense when Narumi, who had an angry pout on her face, ran over and also latched onto his arm with Mito.

"Let go of Naru-nii already!" Narumi shouted, her blue eyes burning with anger and jealousy, as Mito nodded her head in agreement.

But Kin didn't even acknowledge them as she hugged Naruto's arm to her chest, instantly drawing first blood at the bold act. Looking on at the scene, Satsuki, Yakumo and Haku began shaking seeing the 'lovey-dovey' scene unfold before them. Slowly, Satsuki made her way out of her bed, her hands shaking a scary smile on her face as she slowly sauntered over to the group.

Following her actions, Haku and Yakumo also gained smiles that could make the Shinigami shiver in fear as they slowly made their way to game of tug-of-war. Seeing the actions of the young girls, everyone shivered, especially the males of the room.

As they reached neared the group, Naruto's instincts as a living being immediately warned him of an imminent danger. Stiffening, he quickly spotted the other group of girls slowly making their way towards him, like a small group of zombies intent on devouring him. Cursing under his breath for not noticing the danger that was right in front of him, he quickly made the decision to leave.

Reaching out, Haku grabbed his collar as he froze, feeling the chill of her Hyōton jutsu starting to fill the air. The other girls froze as well, waiting to see what Haku was going to do. Slowly, she lifted her head and Naruto felt a bead of sweat run down his face from the chilling smile on her face.

"Naruto-kun, if you don't mind telling me, who is this girl and what is she to you?" She said in a tone that could freeze fire. After hearing the question the others turned to face Naruto, also wanting to know what their connection was.

Looking around, Naruto sighed and closed his eye before he explained the situation.

"You all know already, but this is Kin Tsuchi. She's a friend of mine." He said in a deadpan. After saying that he opened them and took a step back, not only getting scary looks from Haku, Satsuki, Yakumo and his sisters, but Kin was giving him a pitiful and bashful look.

Naruto trained to be ready for anything, Ryuuhei and the Elders teaching him to be cautious and analyze the situation no matter how dire or overwhelming it may be. But no amount of training could possibly prepare him for the words that came out of Kin's mouth.

"N-Naruto-kun... You were my first though... You'll take responsibility right?" Kin said in an extremely bashful tone, her face flushed crimson. While she was talking about him being her first friend, everyone else looked like they had their minds blown.

The girls surround the two; Mito, Narumi, Yakumo, Satsuki, and Haku looked like they had their souls crushed, the words 'responsibility' and 'first' echoing through their heads as they started shaking uncontrollably. While the girls were having a spiritual breakdown, the others didn't fare much better.

The other genin where blushing like mad, even the stoic Shino and Sasuke had blushes on their faces as they let their imaginations run wild with the easily misunderstood words that Kin chose to use.

The adults also didn't act like adults either. Asuma, Kakashi, Genma, Gai and the other male jōnin had tears streaming from their eyes as the muttered the words "before us.." and "youth..." as they covered their eyes with their forearms in an attempt to stop their tears. The women present blushed as their eyes started twitching, starting to get the impression that Naruto was a 'womanizer' who wasn't going to take responsibility for his actions, though Shizune had a blush appear on her face when she imagined what happened.

Zabuza was holding onto the last strings of his self control, seeing his daughter in such a broken state, he was holding onto the handle of Kubikiribōchō as his hand was shaking with his eye twitching. Anko was just gawking, not believing what she had just heard from Kin's mouth. Minato seemed the most affected, he paled knowing what those ominous words meant. Right now, many thoughts ran through his head about how to handle the now international situation at hand, he couldn't keep them separated from each other now that they had 'sealed the deal' could he?

But before the situation could spiral out of control even more, Naruto started to get irritated from the idiotic actions of everyone in the room. Finally having had enough, he addressed all of them at once to clear up the misunderstanding.

"Enough, all of you!" He said, raising his voice as his eyes instantly went from blank to sharp and cold.

Seeing the drastic change in the blonde, everyone snapped out of their delusions and paid attention to him.

"I'll say this just once so you all had better pay attention. As I said before, Kin and I are just friends. We're nothing more and nothing less. What she meant by me being her 'first' is me being her first friend, not what you all are imagining." Naruto said, his eyes seemed to spark slightly making the others flinch slightly.

Having cleared up the misunderstanding, everyone had lost the large blush on their faces but there was still a little pink from the embarrassing situation. Seeing that everyone was finally done with their delusions Naruto sighed before he started walked out before anyone could question him.

After he left, the room gained an awkward atmosphere before it turned tense when Kin turned to them and spoke to the girls present with her eyes narrowed.

"What was that all about?" She asked in a slightly angry tone, as the other girls snapped out of their shock and returned the accusatory glare.

"What do _you _mean? We should be asking you that!" Narumi asked in the same angry tone that Kin was using.

"Hmph, that was just proof of how _close_ Naruto-kun and I are." Kin said in a slightly condescending tone as the other girls started to develop twitches with their eyes.

"You had better watch yourself, what makes you think that you're that close to him anyway!" Satsuki shouted, growing more angry when Kin gave her a smirk.

"I've already kissed him, from what I can tell none of you have done something even close to that yet." Kin said, dropping a bombshell on her rivals' pride, all of them turning red and stuttering.

But Haku quickly recovered and threw her own ammunition.

"W-Well Naruto-kun and I live together!" She said with a proud smile on her face, though all she got were blank looks seeing as she also had Zabuza living with her, and they knew he wouldn't approve of illicit activities while under his watch.

"T-That's not all though, h-he's already seen me n-naked!" That was a powerful blow, seeing as everyone had their eyes wide with their mouths gaping, that is until Zabuza blew up.

"W-WHAT THE HELL?! WHEN?! WHY!? I'LL KILL HIM!" He shouted, now murder was on his mind as Haku paled knowing she stepped on a landmine by blurting out the secret she had been hiding from her father.

"We-Well he personally changed our clothes and washed our bodies when we were in the Forest of Death!" Yakumo said, as she and Satsuki blushed remembering the embarrassing memory.

Hearing the many incidents that their brother had with these girls, Mito and Narumi began to get an ominous black aura around them as a bit of crimson flashed in their eyes, not believing that they were so far behind in terms of memories like those.

The once awkward atmosphere had now turned into a lively environment as the genin started gossiping, the girls pinning for Naruto throwing more angry glares and facts about the blonde to prove who knew him better as Haku tried to restrain her father from going and murdering Naruto for 'tainting his little snowflake'.

The adults sighed, though there were tracing of pink on their faces; the men had their arms over each other's shoulders as they wept, talking about a 'youthful blonde' and how he now had something that every man wishes they had but at the same time didn't want. The women sighed, knowing that they had another potential pervert in the village, silently making an agreement with each other to quell the blondes 'beastly' urges before they run rampant. Minato could only let his head drop, having missed out on having the father-son conversations that he was supposed to have with Naruto, especially those concerning girls, right now he could only hope that Kushina didn't kill him for his son's illicit actions.

After a while, Tsunade kicked them all out of the infirmary, everyone going their own separate ways. The men going to the closest bar to drink their sorrows away in the company of their brothers, the women heading to the nearest sweet and tea shop to discuss the plan for the future, while the genin headed home for a well deserved rest.

Though Yakumo, Satsuki, Mito, Narumi and Haku had one person in mind they were trying to find, hunt, to get answers from. Zabuza was also searching for the same person, his eyes burning with anger and his aura spilling out wildly. Minato headed home, intent on breaking the news of his son's steps into adulthood to his wife, silently praying that he wouldn't be killed when she blew up.

Many of the villagers later that day could have sworn that they heard the scream of an enraged crimson headed demon and the scream of a broken man, as an immense wave of chakra and killing intent pulsed through the village.

(Flashback - End)

After that, Naruto headed to his special training ground, knowing that at least a few people were out for his blood. Opening his eyes, he saw that the sun was about to set and was surprised at the amount of time he spent meditating, usually never having meditated for more then an hour at most. Getting up, was about to head home but froze, for two reason: reason one, Haku. Reason two, Zabuza.

Quickly running a multitude of scenarios in his head, he dropped his head and sighed, knowing that the outcome wouldn't be in his favor no matter the situation. Grabbing his bag, he slung it over his shoulder before making his way back to his apartment, hoping that his roommates had cooled down sufficiently enough by now.

(Scene change - Naruto's apartment)

Arriving at his front door, Naruto sighed as he felt an uneasy feeling sinking into the pit of his stomach. Reaching out, he lightly grabbed the doorknob only to feel the eerie feeling intensify. Sighing once more, he slowly opened the door and was immediately met with killing intent like no other. Wincing, he knew who it belonged to, the oni that was glowering at him being a dead giveaway.

Making his way inside, he was stopped when Zabuza stood in front of him with his arms crossed, his killing intent on full blast. Adding to that, he had an angry and terrifying look on his face, definitely not happy with what happened in the past few hours.

"Well, well, well... look who decided to come home, where were you Naruto? Busy with your _girlfriend_?" He asked, purposely emphasizing the word 'girlfriend' as Naruto sighed before answering.

"Yes I did Zabuza, and no. I don't have a girlfriend." Naruto replied, obviously exhausted with the line of questioning before it even got serious.

"Oh you don't? Well what about that Oto-kunoichi huh? I hear the two of you already kissed." Zabuza half asked, half stated, making Naruto's eye start to twitch from the man's accusatory tone.

"What are you getting at Zabuza?" Naruto nearly growled out, having his patience thinned by the attitude that Zabuza was giving him.

"Oh, getting angry brat? Well now you're feeling a little bit of what I'm feeling right now." Zabuza replied, narrowing his eyes as Naruto mimicked the action.

The tension and killing intent filling the apartment was getting to the point of being able to physically affect the surrounding area, some of the plants that were growing nearby were starting to wilt. But before things got out of hand, the two of them toned down their killing intent and sighed, moving to take a seat next to each other at the counter.

"I'm sorry for my outburst Zabuza, that was rude and uncalled for." Naruto said, apologizing to the older man.

"No, I'm sorry Naruto. You're the one who's been supporting my and Haku, it was rude and disrespectful, what I did." Zabuza also apologized.

Looking at each other, they each cracked a small smile before they talked about what happened, Zabuza explaining that he couldn't stand to see that heartbroken expression on Haku's face, while Naruto explained that he was caught up in a web of misunderstandings from Kin's actions and words.

"I just don't understand why she decided to kiss me in front of everyone." Naruto said, shaking his head at the brazen act. Zabuza gave him a pitying look as he patted him on the back.

"I feel you Naruto, I don't understand women either. Either they love you or they try to kill you." He said, remembering a beautiful lady with green eyes and ankle-length, auburn hair.

As the two fell silent, lost in their own thoughts, the froze when they heard the door open. They didn't need to turn their heads to know who it was, as they felt a chill start to form in the air.

"Ah, so you're finally home Naruto-kun." A sweet and chilling voice said, fear starting to appear on Zabuza's face as a bead of sweat dropped down Naruto's.

"Y-Yeah, I'm back Haku." Naruto answered, still not turning to face her.

Slowly, Haku moved towards the two, her footsteps echoing loudly in the silence of the apartment. Finally, she stopped when she stood behind them, the chill in the air much greater then before.

"Tou-san, would you please leave for a little bit. Naruto-kun and I have a lot to discuss." Haku said in the same sweet and chilling tone, Zabuza casting Naruto an apologetic look for abandoning him in his time of need to his daughter. Though Naruto gave him a small defeated smile in return for his concern.

Making his way out of the apartment, Zabuza turned around and gave a silent prayer for Naruto's safety before making his way to the yakitori stand to wait out Haku's wrath.

Back in the apartment, Haku had grabbed Naruto by the wrist and led him into the living room, making him sit on the couch with her. As they sat, no one said a word, Haku's chilling aura starting to tone down as they remained seating in silence for five minutes. Finally, Haku spoke, breaking the silence.

"Naruto-kun..." She said, her voice low and soft as she slowly reached out and held his hand as he stiffened slightly.

"What is it Haku...?" He asked, successfully hiding the slight waver in his voice. But he froze when Haku leaned forward and buried her face into his chest, nuzzling him softly.

"H-Haku!" He said in surprise, as Haku wrapped her arms around his waist, not intending on letting him go.

"Naruto-kun... Were you really telling the truth? Is that girl really nothing to you?" She asked, her voice muffled slightly from having her face still buried in his chest.

"I told all of you that we were just friends didn't I?" He said slightly agitated, sighing for the umpteenth time after repeating himself once again. But his agitation left and was replaced with a slight breathlessness when Haku raised her head, the her flushed cheeks being brought out by her flawless pale skin, her dark-brown eyes shining.

"Naruto-kun... You'll take responsibility for seeing me naked as well won't you?" She asked, leaning closer to Naruto, who now had a tinge of pink on his cheeks.

"W-What are you talking about Haku?!" Naruto said in a slightly panicked tone, not liking where things were headed.

"You'll take care of me won't you Naruto-kun?" Haku asked, changing her position, now sitting on Naruto's lap as she straddled him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Leaning in close, she rested her forehead on his as she stared into those navy blue eyes that captivated and captured her heart. With each passing second, the pounding of her heart got louder as her blush increased. Her eyes slightly glazed over, she could feel Naruto's breath on her lips. With each breath that touched her lips, a shiver would run down her spine.

Naruto was in a dire situation at the moment, he knew, from what Ryuuhei and the Elders had told him, that a kiss on the cheek was drastically different from a kiss on the lips. One could be seen as affection and interest while the other meant lust or lust and was usually reserved for the one you truly loved or lusted; while a kiss on the cheek could be overlooked and explained as a rather bold display of attraction, a kiss on the lips couldn't be explained or overlooked and often ended in a grave misunderstanding.

Finally having had enough of Naruto 'teasing' her, Haku learned forward intent on capturing his lips with hers. Move, that was all that ran through Naruto's mind seeing Haku lean forward intent on kissing him. As she neared, he shifted his head and instead of his lips, she kissed his cheek. Though he gained a deeper blush, he sighed, knowing that he had adverted a disaster. But he wasn't prepared for what Haku did next.

Seeing that Naruto didn't want to kiss her, Haku started to tear up as Naruto widened his eyes hearing her sniffle. Tears that looked like translucent pearls dropped down from Haku's eyes that reminded Naruto of the sweetest chocolate, flowing down her flushed pale cheeks that seemed to glow with a heavenly light. Her kimono was undone a little, showing off her shoulders and a little bit of her chest, both pale and seeming to glow with the same heavenly light that her cheeks had. Seeing her in such a state seemed to entrance Naruto as he slowly brought up his hand to brush away the tears that were building up in her eyes.

"D-Do you not like me Naruto-kun? Am I not attractive enough for you to kiss me?" She asked, sniffling and hiccupping as more tears started to give way.

"Haku..." Naruto said in a soft and gentle tone, making Haku's heart and stomach flutter with the sincerity and gentleness that it contained.

"You know that I do like you, and I do think that you're very beautiful." He said, reassuring her of her worries as she gradually stopped hiccupping though she still sniffled slightly.

"Y-You're just saying that..." She said, sniffling once again as she lowered her eyes, trying to avoid his gaze. She was stunned when Naruto cupped her chin and gently forced her to stare once again into his navy blue eyes as her blush deepened.

"I'm not Haku. I don't know why, but whenever I see you I seem to forget that the moon exists at all." He told her with a small smile, making her eyes widen before they closed slightly. She placed her own hand on top of his, to feel his warmth even more as a smile that made the stars pale appeared on her face.

As they sat there, savoring the company of each other, someone entered the apartment and immediately broke the intimate scene when he dropped the takeout that he had brought back.

"H-H-Ha...K-Ku... N-N-Nar... T-To..." Zabuza softly stuttered, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Zabuza had returned after 20 minutes, seeing how that must have been plenty of time for his daughter to unleash her fury on the poor blonde. Knowing that he abandoned his friend in his time of need, he brought back some spicy yakitori as a peace offering, who wouldn't want some spicy yakitori?

When he opened the door and walked in, he saw a scene that would scar him for life, scarring him even more then when a teenager walks in on their 'parents doing the deed'. He saw his daughter, his little snowflake, with her kimono undone showing her shoulders and part of her chest straddling Naruto, her hand on his. Naruto wasn't doing anything to indicate that he was trying to resist, in fact to Zabuza, it looked like he was enjoying having his daughter straddle him. Adding to the scene were the expressions that both had; Naruto having a bit of pink on his cheeks while Haku was scarlet. But the icing on the cake was the radiant happiness that Haku had on her face and the smile that graced Naruto's.

Seeing what was before him, he lost all ability to function, dropping the yakitori as the world seemed to turn grey and slow down. As the takeout box hit the floor, Zabuza's eyes rolled into the back of his head as he paled and fell backwards, unconscious.

Hearing the loud thump from the hallway, Haku and Naruto were broken out of their dazed state and turned to look at the disturbance and panicked, seeing Zabuza's feet peeking out from the corner. Quickly making their way towards the downed man, they saw the mess made by the broken takeout box and paleness of Zabuza. Naruto carrying the man to his room, Haku quickly cleaned the mess before rushing to her father's side, frantically checking to see if he was alright.

After a few minutes of panicking, they both let sighs of relief out when he was just unconscious and not injured. Making sure that he was fully covered, they exited the room never hearing him moan about troublesome black haired grandchildren with blue eyes.

Once outside, the two sat awkwardly on the couch together. Remembering the rather steamy moment that they shared earlier, they were of course embarrassed to say the least, but the silence was broken when their stomachs sounded out, making Haku blush as Naruto cracked a smirk. Seeing him smirk, Haku blushed even more before turning away from him as he just smiled.

"I'll make dinner tonight Haku." He said as he made his way to the kitchen, never seeing the serene smile and eyes full of longing that Haku directed towards him. After a few minutes, Zabuza came staggering out and frantically looked at the two, but sighed seeing that it had just been a bad dream that he had, never seeing the blush that adorned Haku's cheeks or Naruto flinching slightly when he asked if she was straddling Naruto.

Zabuza headed back to bed after eating dinner the 'dream' he had of Haku straddling Naruto having taken a toll on his psyche. After he left, Naruto cleaned up and finished the dishes for the night and headed to bed himself.

Finishing his shower, he was stunned when Haku entered the bath with a towel covering her body. Without saying a word, Naruto avoided contact with her eyes as he moved to get past her only for Haku to cup his cheek and give him a long kiss on the cheek, making his eyes widen from her action. Finally removing her lips, she gave him another stunning smile before she spoke.

"I won't lose to anyone Naruto-kun." She said as she blushed, gently pushing him out of the shower as she leaned against the door after closing it.

"_I won't lose you to anyone, not even that Oto-nin. You and me were meant for each other, I won't let anyone else have you._" Haku thought as a determined look came onto her face before entering the shower.

Naruto stood in the hallway with a bewildered expression on his face before he shook his head and sighed, making his way to his room to sleep off the stress the events of the day caused him.

(Time skip - The next morning)

Waking up once he heard the sound of the birds chirping, Naruto slowly got out of bed and turned to the clock, seeing that it was 5 in the morning. Grabbing a towel, he quickly took a shower to avoid meeting with Haku like he did last night. Once he finished washing up and got changed, Naruto left a note on the fridge for Zabuza and Haku before heading out.

Seeing that it was early, Naruto decided to do a light amount of jogging, making his way to the outer gates. As he approached the gates he saw Kotetsu and Izumo already sleeping on each other as he suppressed a smirk seeing the scene. Stretching for a few minutes, he started with his jogging, letting his mind wonder to his plan to leave the village for the month to train. Lost in the midst of his thoughts, he was abruptly broken out of them when he felt a hand on his shoulder, lashing out with a punch, he stopped when he felt that was blocked.

"Haha, yosh! It's great to see other youthful young people out early in the morning training!" Gai said, a bright smile on his face, even after Naruto lashed out at him.

"Oh, my apologies Gai-sensei. I didn't mean to attack you." Naruto apologized, bowing his head. He was brought back up when Gai placed his hands on his shoulder, before he ask a question.

"Naruto-kun, I apologize if I'm asking for too much, but would you mind having a spar with me?" Gai asked making Naruto a bit surprised, but he nodded, wanting to see where he stood against one of the pinnacle figures of taijutsu in the world.

(Scene change - Training ground Nine)

Arriving at his team's training ground, Gai would be lying if he said he wasn't excited. After seeing Naruto's skills, though brief, he knew that he was quite skilled in taijutsu as Lee also back up that statement. Standing a few feet apart, Naruto bowed to Gai as he did the same. Soon, Naruto took the initiative, blurring and lashing out with a straight.

Gai easily blocked the attack, and countered with his own punch that Naruto blocked as well. Quickly, Naruto reacted and spun on his foot, sending his heel flying towards Gai's side. Blocking the strike, Gai lashed out with a lightning fast punch that sent Naruto reeling back, before he flipped backwards before exploding forward in twice the speed.

Widening his eyes at the explosive rise in speed, Gai couldn't help the smile that came to his face from seeing such talent. Rushing in as well, he met Naruto in a furious clash of fists. Every time Naruto blocked, Gai struck twice and vice versa. As Naruto took a step back from a powerful jab from Gai, Gai followed up and smashed the back of his fist into Naruto sending him flying back.

"Oh no!" Gai cried, having put in way too much force in that last blow.

The more he fought Naruto the more he saw that Naruto started to react faster and grow stronger, it was like he was adapting to Gai's style and that in turn made Gai fight back harder. However, that last blow could cost Naruto his match in the finals. But his worries were for not as Naruto stood up, albeit shakily, and spat out a globule of blood.

"Ha... Ha... You're amazing Gai-sensei..." Naruto said, in awe at the speed and power that the man displayed. No matter how much he tried to raise his speed or power, he would be matched by Gai before being overtaken.

Seeing Naruto stand after taking an attack that would injury even Lee when he was using the first few gates, Gai couldn't help but gawk as Naruto took a deep breath before releasing it, his exhaustion seemingly vanishing. Another smile appearing on his face, he took the initiative this time, making Naruto widen his eyes before he blocked a bone shaking kick from Gai, grunting as his arm went slightly numb from the blow.

The two continued their spar for another few hours, before Naruto finally conceded, his body bruised and aching as Gai apologized profusely for his lack of concern. But Naruto waved him off, saying that it was an enjoyable time, giving Gai his rarely seen smile making the older man crush him in a hug as he shouted about 'youth'.

After the intense sparring session, Gai bid Naruto a tearful farewell before asking if he was willing to spar again, which Naruto happily accepted knowing that it would only help him if he fought stronger opponents. As Gai left, Naruto sighed as he rubbed his aching muscles still in awe at the power and skill of Gai's taijutsu prowess. Looking into the sky, he saw that it was probably near noon, meaning that he and Gai had spent nearly 5-6 hours sparring.

Stretching and cracking his body's aches, he made his way back to the village to prepare for his training trip.

(Scene change - Uzumaki-Namikaze Estate)

In the middle of the estate training grounds the Uzumaki-Namikaze family was gathered to discuss who was going to be training who. Gathered was Mito, Menma, Narumi, Minato, Kushina, Kakashi, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Shizune.

"So kids, I want all of you to choose who you want to train with! But remember, there won't be any switching or complaining allowed when you choose you sensei for the week." Minato explained, getting excited reactions from his children.

"Kaa-chan! Please train with me for the month!" Mito said, taking first pick as her right as the oldest present.

"Sure thing Mito-chan! We'll train until you win the whole competition!" Kushina said, as Mito vigorously nodded her head in agreement.

"Tsunade-baachan! Could you please teach me this month?" Narumi asked, employing her 'puppy dog eyes'. Though she didn't need them as Tsunade smiled and hugged her goddaughter.

"Of course Umi-chan! Once I'm done with you, I'm going all in on you in the betting pool!" Tsunade said with her eyes burning in determination as Narumi just laughed at her godmother's actions as everyone else just laughed wryly knowing her luck.

"Hey! Jiraiya-jiji, you'll make me stronger then Tou-san right!" Menma asked his godfather.

"Heh! What do you take me for Menma!? I am Jiraiya the Gama Sennin! The sensei of the Yondaime Hokage!" Jiraiya proudly proclaimed as Menma looked on in awe, as Kushina, Shizune and Tsunade sighed at his boasting.

"Great! Now that everyone has a sensei for the month, you will all need to find somewhere to train. I don't want you to train close to each other because I want your individual training to be a mystery from each other." Minato said, getting nods from his children.

Smiling, he gave them all a hug before telling them that they'll go far if they stick to their training as the other adults agreed, making the children blush. But the light and happy atmosphere was broken when Narumi quickly noted something.

"Wait, what about Naruto-nii?" She asked, knowing that her brother didn't have someone to train him. Anko had been asked by Yakumo to train her and Satsuki had her family.

Everyone froze when they heard the question, who indeed was going to train Naruto. Their first thoughts went to Anko but that quickly left when Narumi told them that she was going to train Yakumo. Then it headed to Zabuza, and immediately Kushina got worried, still not keen on the former Kiri-nin training her oldest. But Minato's eyes seemed to light up, finding this to be a golden opportunity to get close to his son.

"Don't you all worry, I'll be the one training Naruto!" Minato said in a tone of finality, his eyes burning with determination. Seeing him so fired up, they could only nod and hope that Naruto accepted his training.

(Time skip - Later that day)

Night was soon coming, the sun beginning to set on Konoha. In his apartment Naruto was finishing up packing the rest of his equipment and supplies for his trip. Putting his heavy-duty backpack filled with his sealed supplies and equipment on, he headed out of room. Seeing Zabuza and Haku watching TV he let a small smile come onto his face as he looked at the scene, they really acted like father and daughter.

His attempt at stealthy making his way out was ruined when Zabuza asked what he was doing without even turning his head. Sighing, he told them that he was leaving. Before he could even explain, he was tackled and pinned to the ground by both Zabuza and Haku who looked at him with incredulous eyes. Quickly explaining that he wasn't moving out but just going on a training trip for the month, he placated the two before they each gave him a hug, even Zabuza much to the man's embarrassment.

After bidding farewell, Zabuza ruffled his hair and told him to be safe and come back stronger then before. Haku quickly gave him another kiss on the cheek before wishing him good luck and heading back inside with a blush on her cheeks. Shaking his head at their actions, he headed towards the Hokage's tower to get the approval of the Hokage to head out of the village, and he knew that it would be a rough time.

(Scene change - Hokage's Tower)

Minato was signing and stamping the unending pile of paperwork in his office, that had accumulated from him taking part of the day off to assign who would be teaching his children. He hope that he would finish in time to visit Naruto and give him his offer of training him. He was broken out of his pace when Alice, his secretary, told him that he had a visitor which surprised him seeing as it was rather late. Giving her the ok, he was more surprised when it was his son who walked in.

"_Naruto came to see me? Then... Does he want me to train him!?_" Minato thought, his heart nearly bursting in happiness at the possibility that his son wanted to be trained by him.

"Naruto, it's great to see you!" Minato greeted his son with a wide smile, though he was met with a blank face as usual.

"Hokage-sama, I have a request that I wish of you to approve." Naruto asked, as Minato tensed up, knowing what he was going to ask.

"Of course Naruto, please ask away." He said, getting more excited as the suspense started to kill him.

"Hokage-sama, I would like to ask permission to leave the village for the month for training." Minato visibly deflated when he heard those words, instead of being asked to train him.

"N-Naruto, I can train you if you'd like. Was actually going to offer to train you." Minato said, trying to get his son to consider his offer, but he was met with a soft shake of the head.

"Thank you for your kind offer Hokage-sama, but I don't want to distract you from your work and I don't want it to seem like favoritism if you were to train me. I would like it if you could approve my request however." Naruto said as Minato gave him a sad smile.

"Where will you be staying Naruto?" Minato asked, curious as to where Naruto will be training.

"I will be close to Konoha Hokage-sama, so don't worry about me not making it back or being too far away." Naruto replied.

Nodding as he quickly signed a scroll giving his son permission to leave the village thinking that he would be within reach. As he thanked him and turned to leave, Minato called out to him.

"Naruto! Be safe ok? Come back safe." Minato said, his voice warm and concerned.

"I will be Minato-san, I'll be back within the month don't worry about me." Naruto said, his voice usually flat having a hint of gratitude making Minato's eyes widen before a grin made its way to his face. In a flash, he wrapped his son in a hug much to his utter shock.

"I'm glad, don't forget to eat, sleep, shower and brush your teeth okay. If you get tired or hurt, just throw this and I'll be there." Minato fretted over his son before handing him his signature tri-prong kunai.

"I won't, so please let go of me Minato-san. You know I don't like physical contact." Naruto said, his voice a little bashful at being coddled by his father. The grin still on his face from the reactions of his son, Minato waved one last time to Naruto which was returned before he left. Turning back to his paperwork, Minato quickly blew through it with renewed vigor finishing within the hour.

(Scene change - Middle of Konoha)

After leaving the tower, Naruto pocketed the scroll his father had signed. Adjusting his backpack he was heading to the east gate when he froze, his eyes widening when he felt a vile and bloodthirsty chakra emanating from the direction of Kikyō Castle. Narrowing his eyes, he quickly made his way over, not liking the feeling of dread that he was getting.

(Scene change - Kikyō Castle)

Standing on top of Kikyō Castle was a mutilated Dosu and Gaara, his sand stained with Dosu's blood. Soon, Gaara disappeared in a swirl of sand, leaving behind the ruined tower and Dosu's body.

"So that's his true from huh?" A silver haired, glassing wearing young man said.

"You sure that was alright, he was an Oto-nin?" A Suna-nin said, turning to face the man.

"Of course, his use had already expired once the preliminaries were over. So far Lord Hiruko is pleased with the process the plan has been proceeding with so far. Everything has been going according to plan, minus a few slip ups." The silver haired man said.

"Hmm... I'm sure that we're finished once they discover the plan though Kabuto. How can you be so sure that the Leaf won't act?" The Suna-nin said, scanning the area.

"Haha, of course Baki-san. Minato Namikaze isn't one to act from just a threat. He'll strengthen the defenses and then the attack comes, they'll be prepared." Kabuto said, adjusting his glasses.

"Fine, I'll take your word for it. Now..." Baki trailed off.

"We need to get rid of the rats running about!" Kabuto finished as he and Baki vanished via **Shunshin**.

Hayate was in shock at what he had just overhead. Oto and Suna were planning a joint attack on the Leaf. He knew that Suna was still shaky from the war, but to attack them now of all times. But he broke out of his thoughts when Kabuto and Baki vanished, Hayate doing the same himself.

Appearing on the top of the nearby buildings, the three faced off as a bead of sweat dropped down Hayate's head.

"_Damn... It's two on one, this doesn't look good at all..._" Hayate cursed in his mind, as they were about to attack, an arc of chakra force Baki and Kabuto to move as it cleaved through part of the rooftop that they were standing on.

"Naruto?!" Hayate called out in disbelief seeing the blonde once again.

"Hayate-sensei? Are you alright?" Naruto said, jumping at the side of his superior, his Basutāsōdo resting on his shoulder.

In awe of the weapon, Hayate was snapped out of his stupor when Naruto called out to him once again.

"O-Oh, I'm fine Naruto. Thank you, if you didn't arrive I'm sure I wouldn't have survived that encounter." He said, scanning for the enemy only to see that they were gone.

"Looks like they're gone." Hayate said, his eyes narrowed.

"It seems like it." Naruto replied, unable to catch a trace of the unknown ninja.

After the encounter, Hayate returned with Naruto to the Hokage's tower to report what they experience. Minato's eyes grew cold when he heard the about the plan to attack the leaf, thanking the two, he quickly called Orochimaru and Jiraiya to plan and prepare for the attack, knowing that they would strike when they were most vulnerable which meant they would attack during the finals.

(Scene change - Center of Konoha)

After Minato had dismissed them, Hayate and Naruto made their way together to the center of Konoha were they were about to part ways. But before he left, Hayate thanked Naruto once again for his timely intervention which Naruto brushed off saying that he was only doing what a shinobi should do. Smiling at the young blonde, he had asked about the sword and if he knew how to use it which he got a smirk in return.

Once he asked that, Hayate asked if he would be willing to have a spar in the future which Naruto agreed to once he got back from his training trip. But he told Hayate to ask Zabuza for a spar, telling him that he was a lot softer then he looked, which Hayate laughed at before nodding. Patting the younger man on the shoulder, Hayate told him to train hard and come back stronger which Naruto nodded. Finally, they parted ways Naruto finally heading towards the East Gate.

Arriving at the gates, he was stopped by the chūnin on guard duty for the night. After showing them his scroll with the Hokage's seal of approval, they nodded before wishing him luck with his training which he thanked them for. Finally out of Konoha, Naruto made his way to his special training ground.

(Scene change - Naruto's training ground)

Finally making it, Naruto pulled out Ryuuhei's scroll and placed it on the ground. Quickly blurring through a set of seals, he stopped on the Dragon seal then slammed his palm on the scroll. Slowly the scroll began to glow and Naruto opened it, unrolling it on the ground as a thin black portal appeared . Rolling up his scroll, Naruto took a deep breath before he stepped into the portal as it soon closed after he entered it.

(Scene change - Unknown location)

Arriving to destination, Naruto opened his eyes and was immediately jumped back as the ground exploded. Dodging the seemingly endless amount of rubble, he stopped as he looked at what, or rather who, caused the explosion.

His uniform forest green coloration and muscular upper body. His thick hide that was littered with short, jagged spines that reached a maximum height along the back and tail. His narrow snout with a large lower jaw, covered in multiple rows of spines spreading outwards from the teeth. His massive, powerful hind legs, but tiny, poorly developed forelegs that he rarely utilized. His back and shoulder muscles were swelled considerably, parts of his skin having a rich red coloration. It was Jho, his older brother's partner.

"**NARUTO! WHERE ARE YOU!? I KNOW I SMELLED YOU!**" He roared, his voice alone leveling the area around him.

Cursing, Naruto dropped to the ground, instantly catching Jho's attention. Simply turning around, his tail caused a gale of wind that nearly sent Naruto flying.

"**THERE YOU ARE! HOW DARE YOU HIDE FROM ME BOY!**" He roared once more, his presence alone forcing Naruto to kneel in front of him.

"S-Sorry Jho. I was blown away when you dropped on top of me." Naruto replied, sweat dropping down his face.

"**HMM, HAHA! STILL THE JESTER I SEE! COME, STAND UP AND LET US BEGIN YOUR TRAINING!**" Jho said, his anger replaced with a jovial tone.

Sighing, Naruto nodded and jumped on top of Jho as they made their way towards the upper levels of 'Thousand Blade Mountain'.

"**So Naruto, how have you been? I smell the scent of a female on you. Have you been mating?**" Jho said in a casual tone as Naruto choked on his spit from the casual way Jho had said it.

"J-Jho! I'm far too young to be doing something like that!" Naruto said, a blush on his face from both anger and embarrassment. But all his anger got was a bellow of laughter from Jho.

"**Bwhaha! You humans are far too fickle! Mating early ensures that you are able to raise your young if even for a little while! I know that those females wish to mate with you!**" Jho said, as Naruto just muttered under his breath about perverted old dragons.

Finally, they made it to the second level of the mountain. Getting off Jho, Naruto stretched his muscles before making his way into the mountain next to Jho.

(Scene change - Thousand Blade Mountain: Level 1)

Inside Thousand Blade Mountain, the craggy and desolate land immediately changed into a beautiful land filled with green and blue. Quickly glancing around, Naruto turned to Jho.

"Ne, Jho. Who am I training with for the month?" Naruto asked, clearly confused not seeing anyone around.

"**Gwahaha! You're looking at him Naruto! You're going to be training with me for the month!**" Jho said as he laughed once again, making Naruto sigh, knowing that the next few weeks were going to be hell.

"I just had to get the all mighty 'World Eater' didn't I?" He asked no one in particular, though someone did answer him.

"**Ufufufu! Don't fret Naruto-kun, you are in capable hands. Deviljho's title as the 'Embodiment of Hungry' and as 'The Great Devourer' are merely nicknames. His true title is as you said, he is the World Eater. In terms of sheer power, none come close to him.**" A sultry voice said, though there was no visible entity in sight.

"**If you speak to my partner's brother you had better show yourself Chameleos.**" Jho growled out, black and crimson lightning started to spark from his head.

"**Be at ease Deviljho, I mean the boy no harm.**" Chameleos said, as she appeared.

Her body is covered by a purple and white hide. Her head was also large, flat, and has a spiked "crest" with a horn at the tip of her head. Her eyes were similar to that of a chameleon's; large and orb-like with the ability to freely move separate from each other. Her wings are purple color with a grayish white membrane. Her tail was large and shaped like a leaf, with a chameleon-like curled spiral at the end.

It was Chameleos, the 'Empress of Stealth' due to her unique ability to completely erase all traces of her presence making it impossible to track her. Playfully, she wrapped her tongue around Naruto and brought him closer to her as she nearly purred in delight at the heat he was radiating.

"Chamele, could you please let me go." Naruto asked, uncomfortable and embarrassed that he was being used as a living heating pack for the 'Empress of Stealth'.

"**Ufufufu, you are far too cute Naruto-kun. I wish I could keep you all for myself.**" She replied, letting him go seeing that Jho now had a black and crimson haze nearly covering his face.

"Chamele, you really need to tone down your teasing." Naruto said, seeing that Jho nearly lost control of himself.

After the incident was over, they made their way to the center forest as Naruto removed his backpack and placed it in a secure area before he made his way to the forest training ground as Jho and Chamele waited for him.

"**Hmph, took you long enough Naruto.**" Jho said, obviously irked that he took so long though it was only five minutes.

"Yeah, I'm ready for my training. But what will I be learning anyway Jho?" He asked as Jho cracked a savage smile.

"**You will be furthering your strength and taijutsu! Power is just that, power! All you need is the strength to DOMINATE AND DEVOUR YOUR ENEMIES!**" He said, roaring the last part, causing a shockwave to uproot and blow the nearby trees away.

Though he was broken out of his state by Chamele.

"**Deviljho, you know that the boy needs more then just brute strength. That may work for you but the enemies that he will face will not just compete in a contest of taijutsu , they will also use ninjutsu and genjutsu.**" Chamele said, as Jho just grunted as he admitted the truth of the statement.

"**Fine, we will also be training in Ryuuton as well. If you want, you can consult some of the other dragons for extra training.**" Jho said, as Naruto nodded, determination shining in his eyes as Jho gave him his signature savage grin as Chamele gave him her signature teasing smile.

"**Now! Enough talk! LET US BEGIN!**" Jho roared, spinning and slamming his tail into Naruto who barely had time to bring his arms up to defend himself.

Crying out in agony, Naruto was sent flying into the groove of trees as Jho and Chamele instantly went towards him and found him on laying on his back; his eyes wide and filled with pain as he coughed up blood with both of his arms having some of the bone jutting out from the brutal attack.

"**It looks like I got too into it.**" Jho said sheepishly as Chamele instantly tended to the broken form that was Naruto.

(Scene change - Thousand Blade Mountain: Chamber of the Elders)

Gathered in a seemingly endless cave, the Elder Dragons had their attention focused on a screen showing Naruto's image.

"**So he is the one?**" A deep voice bellowed, a steel-grey dragon being its owner.

"**Tsk, he doesn't seem like much. Are you sure that he is the child?**" A proud voice said, belonging to a dragon with orange fur and dark copper scales.

"**Do you not trust the Elder?**" A cold feminine voice said, originating from a beautiful golden clad dragon.

"**Tsk, should just end him. He's weaker then that other human.**" A arrogant voice said, belonging to a blood red hulking dragon.

"**Give him time to grow, that child shows potential to become very powerful.**" A regal feminine voice said, belonging to a brilliant white and blue dragon.

As they conversed and looked at the screen of Naruto being tended to by Chamele and Jho, it shifted to show a girl with sleepy looking face, her eyes closed and a smile on her face with mid length light blue hair. She was wearing a simple outfit that consisted of a white t-shirt, black pants, and black boots. Slowly, she turned to the dragon that she was training with and opened her eyes, revealing brilliant emerald green eyes that had a draconian pupil.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Who could this mysterious girl be? Is she who Ryuuhei was talking about?! Find out next time on 'A Son Forgotten'! Well, that's really all there is for this chapter. And yup, they're MH DragonsWyverns, don't really care too much about the differences but I just really like em so they'll be here for now. As for summoning, Naruto isn't going to have just one I'll just say that right now but he will have a main partner like Jho. Again, PM me if you've got suggestions or questions alright? Cool, till next time say awesome. ;)**

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><p><strong>Shunshin - Body Flicker<strong>: D-Rank Ninjutsu; A high-speed movement technique, allowing a ninja to move short to long distances at an almost untraceable speed. To an observer, it appears as if the user has teleported. A puff of smoke is occasionally used to disguise the user's movements. It is accomplished by using chakra to temporarily vitalize the body and move at extreme speeds. The amount of chakra required depends on the overall distance and elevation between the user and the intended destination.


	14. Chapter 13

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys, it's me again bringing you another chapter! Rad right! Well, it's finally time... Finals week... Ah, waking up at 7 in the morning for a Sunday final, the joy. Haha, well enough of me moping around, you just wanna read right! Well, it's been a little stressful since I've been studying and stuff but I really am trying to bring you guys regular updates since I know you all like them right! AND 100K Views! Pretty sweet! XD Well, anywho this chapter is pretty alright, it's not the best but I don't think it's bad either! I did a little something different with the jutsu since some people have been constantly PM'ing me about having English translation next to the Japanese name, so tell me how it looks, I think it's a little funky. XD **Once again, PM me if you have a suggestion or question alright! I don't really reply to reviews unless it's something dire! XD Well, anywho let's start reading! Let's a go!****

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 13<p>

After having his shattered arms repaired by Chamele, Naruto was unable to train for the rest of the day his arms needing to finish healing. As he was sitting with an angry expression on his face, Jho had the decency to look sheepish, having known that he went overboard with the surprise attack.

"**Naruto... I've apologized many times in the past few hours, how much longer until you forgive me? I know that what I did was foolish.**" Jho asked, which Naruto only scoffed before turning away. Sighing, Jho just left, knowing that humans needed time to 'cool' as Ryuuhei put it, though he wondered why any creature actually wanted to be cold.

Seeing Jho leave, Naruto just growled as he narrowed his eyes, glaring in the direction that the dragon left. Slowly, his navy blue eyes started to have crimson bleed into them the more he thought about the surprise attack. But as the crimson started to undermine the blue, Naruto shook his head and they returned to their navy blue. Widening his eyes, he gripped his head as part of him mind demanded that he attack and end Jho, though he didn't know why.

"_Ugh... W-What's wrong with me?_" Naruto thought, his mind feeling like it was splitting apart.

"_**Why did you allow him to get away with that disgraceful attack? Why not return the favor and end him? Why not consume him and gain more power?**_" A voice that would have sounded exactly like his if not for the hungry and bloodthirsty tone.

"_W-Who are y-you?_" Naruto asked in his head, the pain starting to reach an unbearable level.

"_**I am you, and you are me. We are one, but also two.**_" The voice answered, as the pain intensified as it spoke.

"_E-Enough with the riddles! W-Who are you!_" Naruto demanded, never noticing that his left eye slowly becoming crimson with a draconian pupil or the draconian seal starting to spread.

"_**Hahaha! You dare demand something of me? How brave you are! It is still far too soon for you to know, but I will leave you this warning human. We will become whole once again, once we do there can only be one who will hold control over this. The moment you weaken, I will consume you.**_" The voice said, before chilling laughter sounded out as it slowly echoed into nothingness.

Once the voice left the seal and the crimson in his eyes faded away. Panting with his hands on his head, Naruto had his eyes wide open with a cold sweat breaking on his face. Fear, he felt fear from the warning that the voice had given him. Shaking his head to get rid of the words that continued to echo through his head, Naruto ever noticed that Jho and Chamele had arrived, worry etched onto their faces.

"H-Huh? Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Just a major migraine is all." Naruto said, though they didn't look convinced, they accepted his answer seeing as he knew best as it was his body.

After a checking if he was fit for training, Naruto was able to start his training with Jho after a few hours after getting his arms shattered. At first, he was a little reluctant seeing as Jho had the tendency to get carried away, shown a few hours earlier, but after a little bit of coaxing Naruto agreed.

(Time skip - 3 hours later)

"**FASTER! YOU NEED TO BE MUCH FASTER THEN YOUR PREY IF YOU WISH TO HUNT THEM!**" Jho roared as Naruto did his best to evade the devastating attacks that were thrown at him. Dodging under a tail swipe that destroyed a few trees, Naruto quickly panicked when a black and crimson haze covered Jho's face.

"**POWER! YOU NEED MUCH MORE POWER IF YOU WISH TO DEVOUR EVERYTHING THAT OPPOSES YOU!**" Jho roared once more, leveling the surrounding area and destroying all of the flora that was nearby. After his roar, reared his head back before blowing out a cloud of Ryuuton natured chakra, a dragon's breath.

His eye widening at the fatal black and crimson cloud, Naruto could only watch as the cloud approached him, ending all life that came in contact with it. Before it reached him though, it dissipated as Naruto fell onto his rear, his eyes wide with fear.

"**That, Naruto. Is how you hunt.**" Jho said, the haze vanishing as he leaned forward to check if Naruto was alright.

"**Are you alright? Can you continue? If not you should rest, you are definitely not at the level I hoped you were at.**" Jho said as Naruto shakily got back onto his feet.

Taking a deep breath to calm his frazzled nerves, Naruto calmed himself before settling back into a stance.

"I'm fine Jho, please continue." Naruto said, though a bead of sweat made its way down his head.

Seeing the determination that he had, Jho could only crack a savage grin before nodding. While he couldn't train Naruto in the human arts of taijutsu, ninjutsu, or genjutsu; he could improve his speed, strength, reaction time, and other physical attributes. For learning Ryuuton jutsu, Jho had Naruto observe and feel how he shaped and molded the chakra in his body. Ryuuton jutsu was usually unique to the user, each user having a different way to mold and shape the chakra, and in turn the jutsu that resulted were varied in nature, use and power.

The training session continued for a few more hours, Naruto improving his speed and reaction time to Jho's joy. Soon, night fell as Jho decided that it was time for Naruto to rest seeing as the boy's body was bruised and on the verge of being corroded by the excessive use of Ryuuton natured chakra.

Leaning against Jho who was laying on the ground, Naruto absently poked at the fire. Throughout the day, he had noticed that he was weak, far too weak for his liking. Compared to the stories that Jho told him of his brother being able to fight each of the Elders to a standstill and even winning against some of the weaker ones, Naruto felt powerless, a rare occurrence for the blonde.

"Ne, Jho." Naruto whispered, staring into the flames of the fire pit as Jho shifted slightly to look at him.

"**Is something the matter Naruto? Can you not sleep?**" Jho asked, seeing as the boy has been acting strangely for quite a while now.

"Do... Do you think I'll be as strong as Ryuu-niichan? I... I'm so weak right now... I already know that the Elders mock me, that they doubt my ability to become stronger." Naruto asked, never taking his gaze off the fire.

"**Naruto, strength comes with time. Do you think that Ryuuhei or myself were born with this strength?**" Jho asked, not used to seeing the normally determined blonde so defeated.

"I know you both worked hard to get as strong as you are, but... I don't feel myself becoming strong fast enough." Naruto said, balling hands into tight fists.

"**Tell me Naruto, for what reason do you wish to become strong so quickly?**" Jho asked, genuinely concerned about the changes in the blonde.

"I... I don't know Jho. I just want to get stronger faster." Naruto admitted, dropping his head for his pathetic reason.

Seeing the blonde in such a state made Jho worry, never had he seen such confusion and conflict in a human. Ryuuhei broke down once, but it wasn't the same as what he was experiencing now.

"**Rest. You're answer will come. No matter how much you train, you will only grow as strong as time allows. If you train for a day, you will get stronger by a day. If you train for a week, you will get stronger by a week. But no matter how much you train, you will never get stronger then time allows.**" Jho said, as Naruto nodded his head as he leaned into the dragon and let sleep slowly take him.

(Time skip - 1 week later)

After a week of training that could only be described as 'hell', Naruto found that he had become much stronger then he once was. His strength, speed, reaction time, and intelligence had all skyrocketed after spending time training with not only Jho but also a few of the other dragons. At first, they were reluctant to train him, telling him that he didn't have the same potential that the 'other human' had. Thinking that they were speaking about Ryuuhei, Naruto challenged them for the right to train under them.

He was destroyed, repeatedly. Ending the 'duel' with a single swipe of their tails or arm, they decimated Naruto. But no matter how many times he fell, how many bones were shattered, how much blood was spilled; he didn't give up. Eventually, his perseverance earned him the right to train with them, the dragons seeing that after every beat down, he would come back faster and stronger then before, being able to anticipate their attacks before launching a counter-attack.

Right now though, he was confined to rest and recover, his last training session was with Tigrex who, to the surprise of everyone, agreed to train with him. Tigrex was a special case as he was very different from the others of his lineage. Instead of the yellow/blue striped coloration that his ancestors had, he had a striking blood-red coloration. But that wasn't the only difference, he was much larger, stronger, faster, and more intelligent and cunning then his predecessors. It was because of those enhanced and stark differences that he had built up a wall of arrogance and pride that none hoped to breach, but somehow Naruto managed to get through.

Though training wouldn't have been the words to describe the brutal beat down that Naruto was subjected to. The shattered bones and shredded muscle that Jho gave Naruto was much more preferable to the horrific and near fatal injuries that Tigrex gave Naruto. After the end of his first training session with Tigrex, Naruto's right arm and left leg were nearly severed, connected with a sliver of connective tissue. The session that Naruto had just been subjected to Tigrex had taken a bite out of him, removing a chunk of his right side, crushing his ribcage and collapsing his right lung while piercing his left lung. Through all of that, he dragon showed no hint of remorse, opting to berate Naruto on his weakness and frailty.

(Scene change - Thousand Blade Mountain: Level 1: Eternal Forest)

"Ngg..." Naruto groaned in pain, his eyes fluttering before slowly opening, the light that streamed through the canopy of the forest looking like the reflection of a blade.

"**Tsk. Don't move too much or else you'll just pass out again.**" A deep voice growled out in an annoyed tone.

Hearing the voice, Naruto almost instantly knew who it belonged to, after all he did just get finished being dismantled by him.

"H-Huh... T-Tigrex?" Naruto asked,turning to face the direction where the voice came from, only to feel an agonizing jolt of pain shoot through his side.

"**Didn't I just finish warning you!**" Tigrex said, though he didn't roar, the ground shook from the power of his voice.

"Guh!" Naruto cried out, wincing from the reverberations that resulting from Tigrex's voice.

Seeing the blonde in pain, Tigrex mellowed out slightly, though he had an annoyed and angry look on his face.

"Tigrex... Did you stay with me while I was out?" Naruto asked, curious as to why the cold and proud dragon was by his side rather then out somewhere else.

"**D-Don't be foolish! I have absolutely no idea what you are speaking about human! I did not wait for nearly 5 hours to hear you accuse me of such a humiliating action!**" Tigrex snarled, in what could only be described in an embarrassed tone as the air rippled slightly.

"O-Oh, r-right. I didn't mean to cause a misunderstanding Tigrex." Naruto apologized, not wanting to invoke the wrath of the dragon, knowing that the destruction he could cause almost rivaled that of the Elders.

"**...I apologize for my outburst. I was... uncomfortable with admitting that I had been by your side this whole time.**" Tigrex said, his normally boisterous and destructive voice now calm and soft.

After speaking the two feel into a comfortable silence, the sounds of the forest, rivers and lakes creating a peaceful atmosphere as they sat side by side.

"Hey Tigrex... After all the training that I've had... Do you think I'm strong?" Naruto asked after a few minutes, breaking the comfortable silence as a slightly heavier atmosphere started to form.

"**Strong huh... That is a question that only you can answer. In this world there are only two paths that are open. You can sit weak and stagnant until you hunted and devoured as prey, or you can adapt and change to become powerful as a predator. Strength isn't just about winning. True strength is finding the ways that you can adapt and change, to face those that hunt you and to overcome and consume them even when you are near death. This world will only throw hardship at you, and you should embrace it and face it without fear.**"

Finishing his monologue, Naruto could only look at Tigrex with an incredulous look on his face.

"Tigrex... You know I'm human right? We don't eat each other after we fight or die." Naruto deadpanned as Tigrex's eye started twitching.

"**Tsk. Such an ungrateful human, I share my knowledge with you and this is what I receive in return? Disrespectful.**" Tigrex said, though there was something akin to disappointment in his voice.

"No, I think it was great advice Tigrex." Naruto said as Tigrex scoffed before turning his head away to sleep.

Hearing the snoring of his crimson companion, Naruto turned his gaze to the stars above as they filled the night sky.

"_True strength is finding the ways that you can adapt and change... even when you are near death. To adapt and change huh..._" Naruto thought as he let his mind roam, sleep never taking hold of the blonde.

(Time skip - 1 week later)

(Scene change - Unknown forest near Konoha)

"Ha! Take this!" Menma shouted, lashing out with a quick jab intent on connecting with Jiraiya's jaw. But that quickly fell through when Jiraiya grabbed him by the wrist and slammed him into the ground.

"Ohhh..." Menma groaned, his head spinning as he saw his godfather smirk, clearly amused by his current position and action.

"Still too naive gaki! Do you really think something like that would work on me!" Jiraiya boasted, puffing his chest out and tilting his head while he turned away, putting his hand across his brow in a dramatic fashion as Menma's eye twitched at the scene.

Menma was sure that he could see sparkles emanating from his godfather as he held his pose, clearly not acknowledging that Menma had gotten back up. Narrowing his eyes, he quickly made a few clones before reengaging the older shinobi as Jiraiya cracked a grin at his godson's stubbornness as he moved to intercept the clones.

Bending slightly to the left, he avoided a kick from one of the clones before grabbing it and throwing it to the clone approaching from the right. Ducking, he launched an uppercut that caught another clone that tried to tackle him from behind.

"Grr! Why are you so good at this you pervert!" Menma shouted, his face red with anger and frustration.

"Ha! I told you gaki! I am the great Gama Sennin! A pervert like no other!" Jiraiya declared that only served to fuel Menma's anger even more.

Shouting, Menma quickly made a few dozen clones before he launched a desperate attack against his godfather, not noting that he was facing a clone as the original watched on from a tree nearby.

"_You're not winning this bet Tsunade! I will get my date with you, that I swear!_" Jiraiya shouted in his head, intent on making his godson strong enough to win the tournament in order to claim his prize, as Menma was thrown into the river nearby before he shouted in indignation.

(Flashback - Start)

(Scene change - Uzumaki-Namikaze Estate living room)

"What!?" Tsunade shouted, clearly not amused by what Jiraiya was proposing.

"That's right Tsunade! Menma vs. Narumi, winner take all! If Menma and I win the tournament, I get my long awaited date with you! If you and Narumi-chan win, I'll pay off all the debt that you owe and pay it all back to you!" Jiraiya said with a confident smirk on his face.

Tsunade was shaking, not in anger or fright, but excitement. Never before had such a golden opportunity made its way to her. If Narumi won this, then her life would be set. Her debt would be washed away and she'd get every single ryo back to boot. The only obstacle that stood in her way was her perverted teammate and her godson. Cracking a determined smile, Tsunade's eyes burned with determination as she held out her hand.

"HA! And people say I'm a sucker! You got a deal Jiraiya! You had better start emptying your savings because I'm definitely not losing this one!" Tsunade shouted, as Jiraiya cracked an equally determined smile, albeit a little perverted, as he reached to meet her hand with his.

But before they could connect the handshake the other people in the room cleared their throats.

"Aren't you two forgetting a few people?" Kushina said with a scary smile on her face, making Jiraiya shrink back slightly as Tsunade winced a bit, knowing firsthand what that smile meant.

"I agree, it wouldn't be fair for just the two of you to make such a high stakes wager." Orochimaru said, his eyes narrow at his teammates lack of inclusion on the event.

Though he didn't show it, Orochimaru did enjoy gambling though he'd never admit it openly. This one in particular really caught his attention seeing as it was on his honorary godchildren. He wasn't going to accept being left out on such an interesting and exciting bet.

"I have to agree Jiraiya-sensei, Tsunade, you need to have all of us be a part of it since it concerns all of us!" Minato said as his eyes burned with the same determination that they had.

Seeing the expecting looks, or murderous one in Kushina's case, the two sighed before they relented, knowing that they weren't getting out of this one.

Changing the stakes of the bet to suit each person was difficult though they managed to make do with everyone putting their bets on the person that they thought would win, the winner getting what he or she wanted from all of the losers.

"Alright, so now it's time to place your bets on who you think will win." Orochimaru said, as he readied a pen and notebook to record the bets.

"I'm sticking with Menma! By the time I'm done with him, he'll be unstoppable!" Jiraiya confidently said, his eyes burning with confidence.

"Hmph! I'm sticking with Umi-chan as well, I'll make her strong enough to smash through everyone!" Tsunade said, making everyone laugh wryly knowing that she was probably giving Narumi her knowledge of her strength.

"I'm going for Mito-chan! I'm in charge of her training so I'll make sure that she wins!" Kushina said as her eyes sparkled brightly.

"Hmm... I'm also going to have to agree with Kushina-chan and place my bet on Mito-chan. She's the oldest and will probably be the most balanced out of the three." Orochimaru said, his hand on his chin.

"... I'm going to place my bet on Naruto." Minato said with conviction as everyone widened their eyes as they turned to the blonde.

"W-What? Naru-chan?" Kushina said, clearly having had a momentary lapse in memory by forgetting her oldest, as she bit her bottom lip at her horrible mistake.

"That's... an interesting gamble Minato-chan." Orochimaru said, clearly in thought about the enigmatic blonde.

"But we don't really know where he stands in terms of skill Minato? Sure he was strong and fast, but what if it was a fluke? Are you still taking that risk?" Jiraiya asked in a worried tone.

Jiraiya knew that out of all of their godchildren, Naruto was the one who had almost zero interaction with either him, Tsunade or Orochimaru. Tsunade only saw him when he came in for his regular checkup or when he had a serious injury. Orochimaru and Jiraiya only saw him when he used to live with his family, and even then their interactions have always been cordial and formal.

"I... I know that Jiraiya-sensei, but it's not going to change my mind. I'm going to put my faith in him." Minato said, his confidence beaming much more then they have seen in the past.

"Hmph, we'll see how far your faith takes you then Minato." Tsunade said with a small smirk on her face, though she knew it was wrong of her to think, she knew that he was making a mistake by betting on the blonde.

Seeing that everyone had made their bets, though Kushina looked torn, Orochimaru quickly jotted down their names along with the ones that they believed would win. After making sure that everyone had their bets correctly recorded, everyone signed their names and applied a little bit of chakra to ensure that the document was now official.

"Alright, then it's finished." Orochimaru said, as everyone nodded.

Once they finished making their bets official, Kushina, Tsunade and Jiraiya quickly parted way to find their student and start training them leaving Minato and Orochimaru behind in the living room.

"You sure have a lot of faith in Naruto, Minato." Orochimaru said, as Minato showed him a smile.

"You're right, though we don't know how strong his is, I made the choice not because of the bet but because I'm his father and I believe in him." Minato proclaimed as Orochimaru smiled back at him.

"Haha, I suppose that constitutes as a reason to believe. Come, let's go see your children get run into the ground by them." Orochimaru said as Minato cracked a wry smile at the truth, laughing a little the two made their way to find the children and observe their training.

(Flashback - End)

"Faster Menma! Let your fists fly with the speed of your heart!" Jiraiya said as Menma just sweat dropped at his godfather's seemingly random rambling.

(Scene change - Unknown clearing near Konoha)

"Umi-chan! You're never going to get anywhere with those weak punches!" Tsunade roared as the fires of determination burned brightly in her eyes.

Rushing in, Narumi quickly delivered a volley of blows that Tsunade blocked with a single finger causing the young blonde to widen her eyes before she was sent flying by with a finger flick.

"Ita! That hurt Baachan!" Narumi cried out as she rubbed her now red forehead.

But she had to quickly roll out of the way as Tsunade rushed forward to engage her, her deadly flicks causing Narumi to pale before dodging out of their path.

"Quit dodging and fight like a man!" Tsunade shouted, she definitely didn't want to lose this bet, there was way too much at stake for her to lose.

"Baachan! I'm a girl remember!" Narumi shouted as sidestepped and launched a reverse roundhouse kick at her godmother only to have her kick stopped and be thrown into the freezing lake nearby.

"KYAA! IT'S SO COLD! BAACHAN YOU OLD HAG!" Narumi screamed as she frantically made her way to land as Tsunade's brow started twitching, tick marks beginning to dot her head.

"W-What did you just call me Umi-chan?" Tsunade whispered as Narumi began to sweat as she backed up.

"Uh-oh..." She whimpered as Tsunade grabbed her head in an ironclad grip as the poor girl started to shake in fear.

"I'M NOT OLD!" She roared before throwing Narumi back into the lake, the girl letting out another shriek as she hit the cold water.

(Scene change - Unknown field near Konoha)

"Haa!" Mito shouted, as she collided fists with her mother.

"Oh! Not too shabby Mito-chan! But don't forget the follow-up!" Kushina shouted as she grabbed her daughters wrist and threw her.

"Guh!" Mito cried out when she hit the ground, rolling in an attempt to spread the impact over a wider surface area.

As she got back to her feet, Kushina was already on top of her as she lashed out with a kick that sent her daughter flying a short distance. Not letting go of her momentum, Kushina was about to reengage Mito but stopped when the Mito that was flying dispersed into a plume of smoke. Jumping back, Mito erupted out of the ground in a failed attempt to catch her mother by surprise.

"You're getting better Mito-chan! Just you wait, by the time I'm done with you you'll win the finals without trouble at all!" Kushina cheerfully said as Mito let a smile appear on her face.

They resumed their training as Mito was once again sent flying by her mother's monstrous strength. Catching Mito while in mid-air, Kushina slammed her onto the ground as Mito let out a gasp of pain. Kicking up, she created some distance from her mother before quickly closing in and delivering a volley of punches that her mother causally brushed aside.

Catching one of her fists, Kushina lashed out with another kick that forced her daughter to her knees before Kushina helped her up and told her to take a little break. Sitting down side by side as they took a break, they chatted happily about things only mother and daughter could talk about, which remains a mystery to those who were in the dark.

(Scene change - Unknown location)

In a dimly lit room, a small pale child could be seen hunched over, mixing various vials and compounds before they angrily tossed them aside. Turning around, his white hair and his pink eyes now visible to the person who disturbed him.

"Do you know that you're interrupting me?" The child said as a visible chill ran down the spine of the people present.

"M-My apologize Lord Hiruko! B-But we wanted to know what the plans have become for the invasion." An Oto-nin said in a terrified voice, the others behind him following his example of quaking in fear.

"Hmm... I suppose that it is true that I haven't addressed anyone of my updated plan. Assemble everyone that you possibly can, those who fail to understand the plan once the invasion starts will be killed. Am I understood?" Hiruko said in a chilling tone as the Oto-nin in front of him stiffened before nodding and departing to inform the ranks of the order.

(Time skip - 1 hour later)

(Scene change - Unknown meeting room)

Gathered in a war room, Hiruko sat with the various high ranking Oto-nin that have cemented a place in this room. Glancing around, they all shivered when they made eye contact with him, causing a sadistic smile to appear on his face. Seeing that all of those who led a platoon and squad had assembled, he began.

"As all of you know, we, with the aid of Suna will be staging an inside invasion of Konoha. However, the original plan has been changed greatly. Instead of the sharingan, I've acquired something much more valuable." Hiruko said as confusion swept through the room.

"L-Lord Hiruko, I don't mean to question your decision or knowledge but what could possibly be more valuable then the sharingan?" An Oto-caption said, clearly not knowing anything more valuable or powerful then the infamous doujutsu of the Uchiha.

"Haha! I suppose that young ones like yourselves wouldn't know of what I acquired! They were thought to have been erased from history long ago! What I acquired wasn't a new kekkei genkai but a new vessel." Hiruko said, making the eyes of his subordinates widen.

"V-Vessel? A new body my Lord?" Another Oto-captain asked, never had he heard that his Lord could change bodies.

"Yes, the boy that I marked has something that I thought was lost many years ago during the last few Great Shinobi World Wars, and I simply can't let what I've been searching for go like that." He replied not answering the questions that his subordinates were asking.

Seeing the confusion that captured the room, Hiruko could only laugh chillingly as he told them of the reason of his choice.

"Let me ask you all, do you believe in dragons?" Hiruko asked, and as soon as he did there was instantly confusion and doubt in the eyes of everyone present.

"D-Dragons? Like the ones of legend my Lord? Aren't they just that? A legend and nothing more?"

"Y-Yes my Lord, my parents told me stories of them when I was a child. They are just legends and superstition are they not?"

Hearing the doubt in the voices of his subordinates, Hiruko could only throw his head backwards and laugh like a madman, causing everyone in the room to look fearfully at their leader.

"Haha! I once was like you all! I believed that they were just stories made up by some fool to scare their child to sleep! But I will tell you all this, they exist and they have immeasurable strength." Hiruko stated, as everyone widened their eyes at his tone. There was not ounce of doubt, only truth in his voice.

"That boy who has, or rather had, is definitely connected to those beasts. I only saw it for a brief second but I saw them when I entered his mind to plant my **Kugutsu no**** Noroi (**Puppet Curse)****. He is the vessel that will lead me to domination of this pathetic world. With all the kekkei genkai that I've assimilated and the body of one connected and most likely blessed by those divine beings, I will easily crush all that oppose me!" He declared, laughing madly at the end of his speech.

"That is why, we will wait and bide our time. Once the time is right we will signal the start of the invasion, I will engage the Hokage myself as I will easily stand up to him with my kekkei genkai. The rest of you and your platoons with Suna will cause attack the rest of the village. Ichi, Ni, and San will provide summons to deal large scale destruction and chaos. The problem lies in the other ninja present. The Sannin and the older ninja will undoubtedly pose a threat to this plan, that is why I will send the "Sound Four" and Kabuto to deal with them. With their level 2 curse seals, they should be able to at least hold them for a few minutes while Kabuto and aid them and engage Tsunade. After all this is done, and the morale and peace of the village is damaged, I'll drive the final nail in the coffin. I'll activate my **Kugutsu no Noroi** **(Puppet Curse)**once we retreat and have the boy try to assassinate the Hokage, that should get him either banished or marked for execution; if it's the former we'll just take him once he's been exiled. If it's the latter, we'll enter and take him from the facility that he'll be held in. After that, I'll take his body as a new vessel and we'll begin movement on my plan." Hiruko explained.

After hearing the explanation of the plan, the captains in the room could only gape at their leader. It was an ingenious plan, either way they would gain something no matter the outcome.

Seeing the looks of understanding and admiration among his subordinates, Hiruko could only smirk as they started cheering for him. This time, the Leaf will not get in his way, and what better way to destroy it then with one of its own shinobi.

(Time skip - 1 week later)

Another week had flown by rather quickly in Naruto's eyes. After the brutal training session with Tigrex a week ago, Naruto had starting training more with the dragon. At first, he was rejected, Tigrex stating that he wasn't worth his time to train. But after he accepted it and moved to ask Jho to resume their training he turned right around and said that he never stated that he wouldn't train him. After that they spent nearly every day together, that usually ended with Naruto having to get one of his limbs reattached by the medics.

(Scene change -

Right now, he was doing what he's been doing for the past 3 weeks, getting his body broken and bloodied in an effort to get stronger.

Dodging under a tail swipe that ripped through multiple trees like paper, Naruto delivered a bone-shattering punch against Tigrex. Though bone-shattering wouldn't have been what to call it as Tigrex barely registered the attack. Throwing his forelimbs back, he struck Naruto on the side and sent him flying into the foliage with a crack echoing out. Turning around, he brought his right forelimb back before plunging it into the earth and sending a giant boulder made of earth in the direction that Naruto was sent flying.

Recovering in mid-air, Naruto quickly dropped to his knees as he applied pressure to his, most likely, broken ribs. But before he could do anything to ease the pain, he saw that a boulder made of earth was rocketing towards him. His eyes widening, Naruto quickly drew his right hand back into a claw before it started to crackle with black and crimson chakra.

"**Ryuuton: Ryuuzankuu**! **(Dragon Release: Dragon Slashing Air)**" Naruto shouted as he swung his hand, arcs of black and crimson chakra immediately shredding the boulder as dust obscured his vision.

Before he could react though, Tigrex burst through the cloud and pinned him to the ground, a sickening crunch echoing out as Naruto felt his ribcage crack under his weight.

"**Pitiful. You're still not able to stop a simple boulder without resorting to using jutsu. What would you have done in the event that you were low on chakra or had it sealed away?**" Tigrex lectured Naruto as he grabbed him with his jaws, carefully picking up the nearly unconscious blonde before heading back to allow him to rest.

(Scene change - Thousand Blade Mountain: Level 1: Eternal Forest)

After bringing back Naruto for the umpteenth time, Tigrex settled down in his now usual area as he watched the medics tend to Naruto. The more he watched the more he saw that the medical dragons weren't just tending to him, they were subtly trying to mark him as theirs.

"_**Hn, how amusing. Deviljho did say that there were many human females that were drawn to you as a potential mate, it appears that didn't just apply to humans. Drawing even female dragons who view you as a potential mate, you certainly are interesting Naruto.**_" Tigrex smirked seeing the normally docile and kind medic dragons trying to assert dominance over the blonde.

After a few minutes, Naruto quickly gasped as he sat up, pain shooting through his body from the unconscious action. As he gripped his side, the medical dragons quickly fretted over him asking if he was okay or needed any relief from the pain. Politely telling them that he was fine, much to their disappointment and Tigrex's amusement, Naruto turned to the crimson dragon and gave him an irritated look.

"You know. This is about the 17th time you've done this Tigrex." Naruto said in an equally irritated tone, which only served to make Tigrex smirk slightly at him.

"**I suppose you are right. It must be that I can't control the limitless strength that I seem to possess. I apologize for my lack of control.**" He said with a wider smirk, Naruto getting an angry twitch to his eye.

Soon, both glared at each other much to the worry of the medics but they were for not as they showed a smile, a smirk in Tigrex's case, to the other.

"Thanks for not taking it easy on me Tigrex, I'm feeling a lot stronger then I was back then." Naruto admitted, his smile still on his face.

"**Of course, you do not grow stronger from others giving you ease, you will only grow when pushed to the limits of your ability.**" Tigrex said, getting looks of awe from the medics which only bolstered his pride as Naruto rolled his eyes at the display.

Soon the two fell into a peaceful conversation about their future training plans, Tigrex telling Naruto that for his last week on Thousand Blade Mountain he will not be seeing him as he will be applying for a proper title and a place alongside the elders. Nodding sadly, Tigrex gave Naruto a small smile as he gently nudged him to reassure him.

"**Do not be sad Naruto. While I have told you that you are weak, I was merely jesting. You are strong Naruto and you are someone that I can call a friend.**" Tigrex said, as Naruto widened his eyes before a smile made its way to his face.

"Thanks Tigrex. I'm glad that you're my friend as well. And I was wondering... Would you be willing to, you know..." Naruto trailed off, bright red flowing into his cheeks as he wasn't able to finish his sentence.

Seeing his normally calm and easily annoyed friend actually blushing so brightly while trying to speak formally caused Tigrex to start laughing as Naruto only blushed more in anger and embarrassment.

"**Bwhaha! How endearing, my normally calm friend is blushing up quite the storm! But I know what you are trying to say Naruto, I will honor you by accepting partnership with you.**" Tigrex said after getting his laugher under control, Naruto visibly shaking in anger and embarrassment.

It took a few minutes of calming themselves, but eventually they gave each other a smile or a smirk in Tigrex's case. Swearing to the other that they would properly seal the oath in the future, they parted ways as Tigrex made his way out of the forest leaving Naruto alone with the Medics.

(Time skip- 6 days later)

After parting ways with most of the dragons, even some of the Elders came to see him, which surprised him greatly seeing as they rarely even visited each other. But once they left, Naruto spent the last day training by himself, opting to practice utilizing his Ryuuton and honing the taijutsu skills that he had learned over the past month. As he was training he never noticed the figure nearby that stared at him with curious eyes.

"Ha!" Driving his fist into a tree, he watched with satisfaction as it depressed and cracked on impact before splintering and exploding from the force of his punch. Taking a step back while shaking his hand, he turned around to move to another tree before he froze, a mop of blue hair blocking most of his vision.

"_W-What? I didn't even sense them!_" Naruto shouted in his mind, now on guard as he tensed up.

"Hmm~" A sleepy sounding hmm'd as the mop of blue hair leaned in closer. After they did, Naruto heard sniffing and slowly reached back for a kunai.

"Haa~ You smell nice~!"The same sleepy sounding voice said, finally looking up as Naruto froze. A beautiful heart shaped face with a serene sleepy expression and smile greeted him.

"Hmm~ Is something wrong Blondie-kun?" She asked, tilting her head in a cute manner.

"W-Who are you?" Naruto asked, taking a step back from the unknown girl, something about her put him on edge though he didn't know why.

"Ah~! I forget to introduce myself! Sorry Blondie-kun~!" She said, rapping her hand on her head in a cute manner as she apologized.

"I'm Tatsuko~! Tat-Su-Ko! Now you say it too Blondie-kun!" The girl now known as Tatsuko said, leering closer to Naruto without any regard for his personal space.

"U-Uh, nice to meet you Tatsuko-san." Naruto replied, bowing slightly. But as he rose his head he was met with an angry pout from the girl.

"No adding the -san Blondie-kun! I don't like it!" Tatsuko demanded, her hands on her hips as she increased her angry pout.

"I don't think that'll work Tatsuko-san, it's only proper to address someone you've just met with resp-." Naruto explained only to have his lips pinched by the blue haired girl.

"Uuu~! Well I don't like it!" She said, increasing her pout while she kept her fingers on his lips.

Finally having enough of her closing his mouth, he removed her fingers from his lips as he glared at her with a slightly embarrassed and angry face.

"Well tough luck, I'm not changing it." Naruto said, his instincts were right, something about this girl really set him off.

"Hmm~ How about we decide through a fight then!" Tatsuko suggested as Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"A fight? What would be the stakes?" Naruto asked.

"If I win, you have to call me something other then -san! If you win... I'll do whatever you want!" Tatsuko said with enthusiasm making Naruto sweat drop.

"Sure, if you don't like -san that much I'll take you on." Naruto said, as Tatsuko smiled happily at him.

Taking position a few feet away from each other, they tensed before the rushed at each other, their fists meeting in an deafening roar as they fought for dominance.

"_Sh-She's strong..._" Naruto thought, clearly shocked by the power that Tatsuko had, as he pushed against her.

"_Ah~! Blondie-kun is strong too!_" She happily thought as she put more behind her attack.

Finally, they broke off jumped back, Naruto shaking his hand while Tatsuko rubbed hers.

"You're strong." Naruto said, a small smile making its way to his face.

"You too Blondie-kun~! You should smile more, you look a lot cuter when you do!" Tatsuko said, making Naruto's eye twitch as he schooled his expression as she pouted at his now blank face.

Without saying a word, they reengaged each other. Tatsuko threw a lightning fast left jab that Naruto caught with his right hand, pulling her off balance before slamming his elbow into her side. Before it connected, Tatsuko caught it with her own right hand as the two slowly exerted more pressure on the other as the ground started shaking from their power.

While they battled for dominance above, Tatsuko shifted her body slightly, causing Naruto to lose the opposing pressure against his elbow, causing him to stumble slightly. Taking advantage of his loss of balance, Tatsuko moved under his arm that still had a grip on her hand and grabbed it as she pulled him forward in an attempt to slam him. As soon as he was lifted into the air Naruto steadied himself as he landed on his feet, in a bridge position.

In the position that they were in now, Tatsuko could feel Naruto breathing on her stomach which caused butterflies to flutter inside of her, at the same time Naruto was at eye level with her groin, his eye twitching at the humiliating position he was now in. Kicking off the ground, Naruto spun backwards in an attempt to kick her as Tatsuko immediately let go and jumped back.

Once again, they were at a stalemate as they stared at each other panting slightly. Scanning her for any signs of weakness, Naruto narrowed his eyes when he saw that she wasn't even fazed in the slightest. Across the clearing Tatsuko was doing the same, reaching the same conclusion when she found no chinks in Naruto's defense.

Slowly, Naruto's eyes started to spark as they turned electric blue. Across from him, Tatsuko looked on in shock before she slowly opened her sleepy eyes. Slowly, emerald green eyes came into view as they stared at each other. Electric blue and emerald green eyes both bearing draconian pupils staring at and analyzing the other for any sign of weakness.

Then, they vanished as they collided fists once more, a tremor resulting from attack. Drawing their fists back, they unleashed a volley of brutal attacks, each collision causing a small quake to resound across the clearing. Spinning, their kicks connected, a sharp wind cutting them each on the cheeks, drawing a thin line of blonde.

Acting quickly, Tatsuko grabbed his leg and twisted, successfully slamming Naruto into the ground as he let a pained grunt escape his lips. Kicking his leg free from her grip, he spun on his hands as he swept her feet from underneath her before twisting his body and slamming his heel downwards though Tatsuko caught herself in mid-air and blocked Naruto's attack by lashing out with her fist. The result was sending them flying away from each other.

Standing up once more, they faced each other as their eyes started to spark. Slowly, chakra flowed into their right hands as black and crimson lightning enveloped Naruto's while black and blue shrouded Tatsuko's.

"**Ryuuton: ****Garyuusai**! **(****Dragon Release: Crouching Dragon Crush)**"

"**Ryuuton: Garyougeki**! **(****Dragon Release: Reclining Dragon Strike)**"

Naruto and Tatsuko shouted, both vanishing and appearing in front of each other and crouched their right hands cocked back. In a flash, they covered the distance between each other as they collided with each other, a terrifying shock wave resulting from their attacks. Their fists grinding against the other's jaw, they fought for dominance as their chakra flared once more. Finally, Naruto felt his head throb as he winced and in turn lost his concentration for a split second, allowing Tatsuko to gain the upper hand send him rocketing backwards.

Naruto stopped once he crashed into an outcrop of rocks, an explosion of rubble and dust obscuring the view. Slowly Tatsuko made her way to where Naruto crashed, as her eyes slowly lost their emerald green glow and her round pupils returned. As she neared the outcrop, Naruto fell out cropping onto his knees panting. Looking up, he spotted a smiling Tatsuko looking down at him with her hand extended. Sighing, he accepted her help as she lifted him onto his feet.

Finally finished with their duel, they observed the area that they were fighting as sweat dropped slightly as they saw the destruction that they caused. Looking back at each other Tatsuko gave Naruto a serene smile as he cracked a small smile in return. Walking towards each other, Naruto sighed before extending his hand out towards her as she tilted her head in confusion.

"It's my lost Tatsuko-san. From what I saw we were pretty much even, though that last attack showed that you were stronger." Naruto admitted as Tatsuko let a melting smile appear on her face.

"Yeah, so I'll stop calling you with the '-san' suffix." Naruto said, as Tatsuko nodded her head happily.

"Then you can call me Tatsuko-chan, Blondie-kun~!" Tatsuko said as Naruto's eye started twitching.

"Sure thing... Tatsuko-c-chan..." Naruto growled out, clearly not liking having to add the '-chan' suffix to the end of her name.

"Ne, Blondie-kun~ I forgot to ask, what's your name?" Tatsuko asked making Naruto freeze before he facepalmed, having forgotten to introduce himself.

"My name's Naruto, Tatsuko-san." Naruto replied before Tatsuko pouted at him before tackling him to the ground.

"Muu~ I told you that it's Tat-Su-Ko-chan Naruto-kun!" Tatsuko whined as she leered closer to him.

"Fine, fine! I'm sorry Tatsuko-chan! There, happy!" He replied, putting his hands in a placating manner which got a smile from the sleepy girl.

After the whole duel was over they made small chat with each other, telling each other where they were from and how they got access to the mountain. Naruto learned that Tatsuko was his age and used to be an orphan after her parents left her to raise her younger sister but was adopted by a similar person to Ryuuhei to his amazement.

(Flashback - A few years ago)

A young Tatsuko was sitting on the shore of a small lake with her feet kicking in the water, a content and still sleepy expression on her face. Next to her was a beautiful girl with raven black hair that fell to the back of her waist, her outfit consisted of a tattered black cloak, a simple black t-shirt, and shorts with a pair of boots to top it off. Her emerald green eyes shone with happiness and contentment. After a little while the two looked at each other and smiled.

"Ne, Kaida-neechan, what did you want to talk about?" Tatsuko asked in a sleepy tone, as she giggled when a small school of fish swam by her feet.

"Suko-chan... Do you remember what we talked about a long time ago?" Kaida asked as Tatsuko stopped giggling and looked into the lake.

"Mhmm..." Tatsuko replied in a soft tone.

Seeing her little sister in such a state broke Kaida's heart but she knew it was time, her time was running out after all. Pulling the younger girl into her chest, she hugged her tightly as she felt her hug be returned.

"It's time for me to go Suko-chan..." Kaida said as Tatsuko widened her eyes, filled with fear and disbelief and soon tears.

"Shh... It's alright, I'm here Suko-chan..." Kaida whispered as she felt Tatsuko's tears start to dampen her shirt, her small body starting to shake with each sob.

"Suko-chan... we've had a lot of fun together. I've cherished every single moment of it, and I wouldn't have changed it no matter what. But this is something that I can't avoid, none of the people in my clan have ever avoided it. Suko-chan... " Kaida said as she saw Tatsuko nod her head slowly, never removing her face from her chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Suko-chan; I'm sorry I won't get to celebrate your birthdays anymore with you, I'm sorry that I won't be able to embarrass you on your dates or threaten your boyfriend, I'm sorry that I'm such a horrible big sister. I know that you'll probably never forgive me for leaving you behind like this but remember that I'll always be looking out for you. Even when I'm gone, I'll be looking out for you. I know that you'll be upset, hurt, angry, sad, and a hundred other things but never give into any of those negative emotions imouto; they only lead to pain and hate. I know that you're so much stronger then that, I trained you to be." Kaida said as she felt her own tears falling from her eyes as Tatsuko's sobs and shaking increased.

Taking a deep breath and wiping away her tears, Kaida steeled herself as she continued.

"Suko-chan, I want you to remember that no matter what anyone says, you're the strongest, kindest, bravest, sweetest, cutest and most beautiful girl that I've known and had the pleasure to call my imouto. Don't give into the hate that plagues this land, rise above it and prove that you have the blood of a dragon running through your veins." Kaida said, tears flowing once more down her eyes as she tightened her grip on Tatsuko.

"Su-Suko-chan... Find a someone who you can relate to and get to know them. Find s-someone who you can trust without reason and if possible, f-find ha-happiness with. I know that you'll make me proud. So... u-until we meet again, re-remember that, that I love you and that I'm always watching over you."

By the end of her speech, Kaida was sobbing loudly as her body shook alongside Tatsuko's. Embracing each other, they poured out the feelings built up over years of living, eating, sleeping and being together in one go. Unable to take anymore, Tatsuko had cried herself to sleep as Kaida wiped away the last of her tears before a serene smile appeared on her face. Bringing Tatsuko back to their house, Kaida put her in her bed and tucked her in for the last time. Finally, she leaned forward and planted a kiss filled with all the love she had onto her forehead. Pulling back, Kaida brushed away the last of her stray tears before quietly leaving, never to be seen again.

(Flash back - End)

Afters he learned that she lived in a small but rich agricultural village that was close to Kumo. Once they broke the ice, they managed to talk with each other comfortably. But soon the time came for them to part ways, Tatsuko saying that it was close to her evening nap which made Naruto sweat drop, now knowing that the girl took naps very seriously.

About to head back to the forest for one more night of training before the last day, Naruto was stopped when Tatsuko wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her chest into his back, making Naruto freeze and stiffen up immediately.

"W-What are you doing Tatsuko-chan?!" Naruto asked, tensing even more when he felt Tatsuko bury her face into his back and nuzzle him.

"Mmm~! Naru-kun, you really do smell nice. And you're strong and cute~!" Tatsuko said, as she tightened the grip she had around him.

"You didn't answer my question!" Naruto said, his embarrassment replaced with irritation.

"Hmm~? Oh, Kaida-neechan told me that one day I'll find someone who makes my tummy feel funny. At first, I thought she was talking about making me hungry but I think I get what she means now Naru-kun~!" Tatsuko said, her voice slightly muffled.

"Huh?" Genuinely confused, Naruto tilted his head back and Tatsuko lifted hers as they locked eyes. However, Naruto, who was now used to girls advancing on him, wasn't prepared for what Tatsuko did.

Leaning forward, she quickly captured his lips with hers as he widened his eyes. It only last a few seconds, but to the both of them it felt like an eternity. Pulling away, Tatsuko had her eyes slightly open, her brilliant green eyes shining in the moonlight and her cheeks red. After the kiss they shared, Tatsuko tightened her arms around Naruto as she returned her face to his back.

"You're mine Naru-kun. This is what Kaida-neechan was talking about, I'm sure of it. Even though we've only known each other for a few hours, I feel like I've known you my entire life. When you smile or laugh, I get this funny and tingling feeling in my stomach and it doesn't feel bad. When I look in your eyes I seem to lose myself in them." Tatsuko said as she shifted her body, moving around so she now faced him, her head resting on his shoulder as he remained frozen.

"_She kissed me... She actually kissed me... But why... I feel like I've known her for much longer then in actuality. Is... Is this what Ryuu-niichan was talking about... About finding 'her'...?_" Naruto thought as he slowly wrapped his arms around Tatsuko's waist, as he felt her squeeze him tighter.

"Hmm~ Naru-kun~!" Tatsuko purred as she buried her face deeper into his shoulder as he just held her.

They remained like this for a few more minutes before Tatsuko broke the intimate embrace, a scarlet blush and dazzling smile on her face. Before they fully parted, she leaned in once more and kissed him once again on the lips before pulling away fully.

"Remember Naru-kun, you and I were fated to meet and be together. I'm sure our older siblings would have thought so too." Tatsuko said with a smile on her face before she skipped off, back to her home.

Naruto just stood there and watched her go, enchanted by her skipping like a fairy through the moonlit clearing. He couldn't help the smile that came to his face as he watched her leave as it remained even as he was turning around and heading back to his training area.

Once he got there, he let out a sigh as he touched his lips, still tingling from the kisses that Tatsuko gave him. But as he was about to replay the scene, his head started to throb again, this time it was much worse.

"_**Hahaha! What was that?! Falling for such a human gesture!? Are you sure that you're even a dragon!?**_" A condescending and taunting voice echoed through his head.

"_**You are pitiful! This only goes to show that you are not the person you used to be! To feel 'love' and 'forgiveness'?! Such humiliating human emotions! What happened to the blonde who swore never to let anyone near his heart again? Did you erase him from your heart? Your soul?**_" The voice continued as Naruto gripped his head, trying to ease the head splitting pain that tormented him, a purple haze surrounding him as the draconic seal started to flare to life.

"_**Of course he isn't gone... You can't erase something like that just by wallowing with the weak. I've already consumed him, do you know who I am now boy?**_" The voice asked as Naruto just dropped to his knees as he squeezed his eyes shut and grabbed his head the pain intensifying; black, crimson, and purple chakra spiraled wildly around him as the seal covered the left half of his face.

"_**I am you and you are me. We are one, but also two. You are what remains of your human heart, while I am the dragon the sleeps within it. You would be wise to close off your heart like you declared all those years ago, these emotions they will only weaken you in the end.**_" The voice said, as Naruto snapped his eye open, his left eye now glowing crimson in color as a purple haze and hue emanated from it.

"_**Remember boy... We will become whole once again, once we do there can only be one who will hold control over this. The moment you weaken, I will consume you...**_" The voice finished, softening at the end though it seemed to sound louder then thunder.

Still on his knees with his hands on his head and his eyes wide open, Naruto let out a roar that caused a small explosion where he was kneeling. Once the dust settled, he was in the same position as before as a number of dragons burst through the foliage to investigate the disturbance.

"**Naruto! Are you alright?**" Chamele asked, frantically fretting over the boy as Jho approached him.

"**Naruto, what happened? We felt an immense amount of killing intent and an incredible amount of Ryuuton natured chakra.**" Jho asked, quickly scanning the area for a potential threat.

"Chamele? Jho? I... I don't know..." Naruto answered before he fell face first into the ground, Chamele and the medics quickly rushing to check over him. After they scanned him and found nothing but exhaustion, they let out a sigh of relief as he carefully moved him to the resting area. As the rest of the dragons satisfied their curiosity and left, Jho and a few of the Elders turned to the area that Naruto had been sitting in, the land and life tainted with something they were very familiar with.

"_**Dragon Virus...**_"

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Who or what is that voice? Is it dangerous?! Hiruko's plan is to use Naruto as a puppet to kill his father?! And Gasp! Dragon Virus!? What could this mean for our blonde hero? What about Tatsuko?! She took his first actual kiss, she needs to take responsibility right? XD Well yeah, that's all for this chapter! Leave a review and tell me what you think of my story so far! Tell me what you think about the jutsu naming convention so I can decide to scrap to start using it alright? And <strong>Once again, PM me if you have a suggestion or question alright!<strong>**

****Tatsuko is based on well Tatsuko Itagaki from Majikoi.****

****Kaida is based on Tifa Lockheart from Final Fantasy.****

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><p><strong>Kugutsu no Noroi - Puppet Curse<strong>: A-Rank, Ninjutsu, Juinjutsu; Hiruko uses this technique to take control of people. It can be activated long after the technique is first applied. The appearance is a red eye with another circle in it resembling the pupil, with four lines stemming from the upper line of the eye and two big thick lines stemming from the side of the eye. This power seems to control the minds of others as will take control over the target's body. The eyes of the person who get caught by this technique turn red while they are being controlled. The technique works in a manner similar to controlling a puppet; using hand motions to guide the target to its destination.

**Ryuuton: Ryuuzankuu - Dragon Release: Dragon Slashing Air**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; Naruto gathers Ryuuton natured charka into his hand and fingers. After the right amount of chakra is added, he then swings his arm in an arc, sending blades of concentrated chakra that can shred and slice through almost anything. It can also be used defensively as a way to disrupt large scale attacks.

**Ryuuton: ****Garyuusai - Dragon Release: Crouching Dragon Crush**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu, Taijutsu; Naruto gathers Ryuuton natured charka into his hand and strikes his opponent with a charged uppercut that has the potential to behead them if given enough time to gather chakra into his hand. Upon impact, Naruto releases the chakra that he's gathered and causes a concussive blast capable of causing severe internal damage.

**Ryuuton: Garyougeki - Dragon Release: Reclining Dragon Strike**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu, Taijutsu; Tatsuko gathers Ryuuton natured charka into her hand and strikes her opponent with a charged uppercut surrounded by an upward surge of energy, lifting the target into the air. It can be varied as she can also performs a sweeping kick on the targeted enemy followed by a rising back flip that knocks the enemy into the air.


	15. Chapter 14

`"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey everyone, I'm back. I'm sorry for the two weeks I've been inactive, but somethings came up and well... I kinda lost my drive for writing for a bit. You all know that I love to hear from you, and love to know what you guys think. But man, since my last update I've just been flooded with flames and a lot of hate messages. I don't know what I did wrong but I have to remind you guys that this is my first story, I don't have much experience when it comes to writing unless it's a research paper or lab report. I'm sorry if I offended any of you, but please remember that. I write because I enjoy it and I love to hear the positive reactions and praise that you guys always offer me, but lately all I've been getting is overly critical and hateful reviews of my story. It's not the best in the world and it won't ever be. Those who gave me those critical reviews with good intentions, I thank you. You really are trying to help me and I really appreciate it. Well, that's more then enough complaining right? You guys need an update so here's a 20k for being such faithful readers, it really does make me happy. Remember, any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions; PM me, it's the only way to get me to respond to you awesome people. Anywho, let's a go shall we?**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 14<p>

Resting in the medical area, Naruto slowly opened his eyes as the first rays of light started to pierce through the canopy of the forest. Slowly, he shifted the position of his body, from laying down he moved to sit up when a jolt of pain shot through him. Grimacing slightly, he ignored the pain as the managed to shift his position.

"Damn... My head feels like Tigrex just roared right in my ear." Naruto whispered as he held his head, wincing as the pain seemed to intensify for a brief moment before slowly fading.

Letting out a sigh, he steeled himself before he pushed off the bed, biting back a cry as pain jolted through his legs. Managing to stand, Naruto slowly stretched as the knots and aches started to fade before they vanished completely. Sighing in relief at the loss of tension in his muscles, he moved to his temporary living area near the edge of the forest to wash up and start packing for the journey home. Closing his eyes, he let a small smile come to his face as the sounds of the forest started to come to life.

When he got to his temporary place of residence he grimaced slightly seeing that every piece of clothing that he brought was reduced to practically scraps. Sighing in defeat he grabbed a pair of what used to be combat jeans now reduced to shorts and decided to go without a shirt seeing as his upper body was practically covered in bandages. Quickly washing up, he tied his headband around his right bicep before changing and replacing the old bandages with new ones, then he wrapped his arms with combat tape and strapped on a pair of black shinobi sandals before he started packing.

Finishing sealing the last of his belongings in a storage scroll he grabbed his backpack and put it on as he made his way out of the forest towards the entrance of the forest. Along the way he saw that a few of the dragons came to bid him farewell, the medics in particular were very teary when they saw that he was leaving though they brightened up when he said that he would definitely return in the future.

After being reassured by him, the nuzzled him happily before giving a bag of curatives full of various powerful healing tonics that they used on him, he was hesitant at first to accept the generous gist because they were giving him such potent and rare medicine but eventually they reassured him that they were actually simple and quite common in Thousand Blade Mountain, the only reason they were thought to be rare was because of the lack of humans that were permitted to enter the mountain. Bidding farewell one more time to all of the dragons that came to see him off Naruto finally exited the Eternal Forest.

(Scene change - Thousand Blade Mountain: Chamber of the Elders)

"**Aren't you going to see him off Deviljho? He was under your care during the duration of his stay here; it is only polite for a host to see their guests off.**" A feminine asked belonging to a brilliant blue and white dragon, as she turned to face Jho.

"**There is no need; he is not a child that needs to be coddled. He proved so during his stay here, managing to break through that child Tigrex's pride and arrogance. That alone has proven that he has the heart and strength of a dragon, Zerureusu.**" Jho replied, causing Zerureusu to let out an elegant and beautiful laugh.

Zerureusu is a bipedal flying wyvern with mainly ash-white coloring and strange crystal/spikes formations that exhibits inner blue glow that are distributed evenly across the shelled surface of her body, with exception of her lower neck, underbelly and wing membranes. The tips of her phalanx are more developed and have been sharpened to have a cutting edge, similar to a moody pitch black wyvern.

"**Though I am surprised that you even mentioned Naruto. Have you actually taken interest in a human?**" Jho asked in a slightly teasing voice as Zerureusu just turned away, her wing covering part of her face.

"**I do not know what you are trying to insinuate Deviljho; I have absolutely zero interests in humans as I've said time and time again.**" Zerureusu replied, through a tinge of pink could be seen on her face as Jho just cracked a savage smile at the scene.

But before the two could talk anymore, the chambers quickly heated up as a literal sea of flames flooded the chamber. Zerureusu quickly took to the air as Jho merely grunted as the flames seared his hide, wincing as they started to crank up in intensity. But before they got to unbearable levels they were extinguished, a hulking crimson dragon chuckling as they vanished.

"**So it seems you can**_** '**_**take the heat**_**'**_** as humans say, Deviljho.**" The dragon as said as he took a place next to Jho as Zerureusu landed on the opposite side, both directing a glare at the newcomer.

Crimson Fatalis is a Fatalis whose shells and scales have become a reddish-crimson color after generations of exposure to the Volcano. One of his four horns is extremely overgrown in comparison to the rest. Extremely aggressive and violent, even by the standards of his younger and older brother. Crimson Fatalis' rage was nearly everlasting, finally fading away after someone managed to partner him many years ago and quelled the hatred and anger that burned through his veins. Though instead of angry and rage, it was replaced with pride and arrogance.

"**For what purpose did you attack us Crimson? You know it is forbidden to any of the Elders to engage each other without the permission and blessings of White.**" Zerureusu said, narrowing her eyes at the dragon beside her.

"**Do not be alarmed Zerureusu, neither of you are harmed correct? That was merely a greeting, if I truly wished to harm you, neither of you would still be standing.**" Crimson said flashing a savage smile back at her while Jho remained silent.

Before Zerureusu, Crimson, or Jho could retort they felt an immense pressure wash over them. Any other dragon would have immediately been forced onto their knees, anything other then a dragon would have been crushed or rendered unconscious from such pressure, but these weren't just regular dragons, they had carved out a position near the top of the hierarchy as an Elder.

Soon the chamber began to fill with the various other Elders all glancing at their fellow dragons be it intrigue or dismissal. As the chamber was finally filled and silence had taken over from the open ceiling a white figure could be seen drawing closer. Finally it landed in the center of the room on top of the raised piece of earth, the one every inhabitant of Thousand Blade Mountain considered the most powerful being in existence, White Fatalis, known to all of the other dragons simply as White.

Seeing the one they all respected, feared, and wished to surpassed had finally arrived, they all quieted down and waited for him to address them. Slowly scanning the room, White nodded seeing as everyone had arrived as he had asked. Relaxing his body which in turn caused the other dragons to relax, White started to speak, his voice alone causing the entire mountain to shake softly.

"**I wish to thank you all for attending this meeting on such short notice. I apologize for causing such an inconvenience but I sensed something that troubles me.**" White softly said, though behind his gentle voice there was a hint of worry.

Hearing White's voice laced with worry, the dragons in the room couldn't help but be a little apprehensive. If something worried their ruler, one who could erase a mountain with a single glance, then it must been something that warrants their attention.

"**As you all know, there was a human that has just recently departed back to their home. There is something different about that human then the ones of the past. I sensed traces of the dragon virus but something much darker lurking within him. I wished to advise caution when interacting with him. That is what I called together this meeting for; please spread this to the other dragons within your domain.**" White said, getting a nod of affirmation from the dragons, though Jho put on a troubled face.

Once White dismissed the meeting Jho made his way back to his own domain, his heart heavy from the news that something even darker and more twisted lurked within the second human that had shown him kindness and friendship. Reaching the center of his domain, he released a tired sigh before collapsing, sleep soon taking over as he reminisced through the fond memories of both Ryuuhei and Naruto.

(Scene change - Naruto's location)

Sneezing suddenly, Naruto wondered who was talking about him at such a time. Cursing under his breath he couldn't stop his eye from twitching as he constantly checked a small pocket watch while he sprinted to the place where his scroll was. Because of meeting with Tatsuko the day before, he had completely messed up and forgotten the time that the finals were supposed to start and now he was running late.

Releasing an irritated sigh, Naruto could only blame himself for forgetting such an important date. Knowing that he still had a long journey ahead of him, Naruto could only hope that his match was pushed back as he raced across the craggy landscape. As he checked the watch once more he narrowed his eyes as he would most likely be going into the competition in what he was currently wearing which could only mean embarrassment and questions. Sighing he slipped the watch back into his pocket as he jumped over a small trench.

(Scene change - Hiruko's temporary base of operations)

In a large open room, Hiruko stood in front of a vast number of Oto-nin as he prepared to give out his final orders for the invasion. Slowly scanning the assembled ninja, he could see them all minutely shift slightly as his gaze fell on them. Hiding a smirk behind his bandages, he finally closed his eyes as the small amount of noise vanished.

"The time is finally here. The finals of the chūnin exam are beginning today and that signals the start of my plan and our invasion. After the failed attempt at killing the Konoha shinobi what overheard our plan, my informants have told me that Konoha has increased the number of sentries and sensors within the village walls, actively searching for and detaining those they do not know who have above jōnin level reserves of chakra. This is going to be a thorn in the side, but that is why I have gathered all of you here to explain the change in my plans." Hiruko started.

As he finished, a small murmur going through the ninja present at their leader's rather late declaration of changing the attack plans that they have memorized over the course of the month.

"The increase in security is among the chief reasons that I've changed my plans. Suna has already proven to be unstable when the Yondaime Kazekage broke the terms of our agreement. That's why I removed him before he became a liability. But this turned out to be a blessing instead of a curse, with Rasa out of the way I'll be able to masquerade as the Kazekage and secure a dominant position near the Hokage with a few of my trusted and strongest ninja present as my guards. Once the final match is over or when Suna's jinchūriki loses control of himself, I'll attack the Hokage once his guard drops. Once I do, then the rest of the forces will attack like previously planned and like before, cause as much confusion and chaos as you can." Hiruko finished, getting nods of affirmation from his ninja.

Seeing that his troops were all in order, Hiruko quickly performed an advanced **Henge** to take on the appearance of the Kazekage and proceeded to the stadium as his ninja quickly organized themselves and prepared for the upcoming war.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium)

Nestled near the center of the village was the exam stadium used for all kinds of events, and this day in particular it was packed to the brim with civilians and ninja alike, it was the day for the finals of the chūnin exam. Many familiar faces dotted the arena; the genin who didn't pass sat together, the parents and relatives of those contending, above the arena sat the 'Kage's Box' where Minato and the Kazekage with their guards were seated. Below the box was the area where the daimyos and other upper class spectators and judges were seated.

Gathered below, Hayate and the genin who were about to partake in the tournament stood in the center of the arena, a few nervously glancing around and the others looking blankly in the direction of the 'Kage's Box'. Coughing slightly, Hayate noticed the nervous glances of a few of the genin present.

"_Where's Naru-nii? Oh no! Did he sleep in!? I knew I should've asked him to walk with me here!_" Narumi screamed in her head as she frantically scanned the area for any sign of her beloved brother.

"_Naruto-nii where are you?! It's not like you to be late like this! I knew I should've gone to get you when I left this morning!_" Mito anxiously thought, also scanning the area for her beloved brother.

"_Naruto where are you!? You've always been the first one to arrive whenever we have to meet as a team! You had better not miss this!_" Yakumo thought, scanning the stands before locking eyes with Satsuki who was thinking about the same thing.

"_Damn it! Where are you, you idiot!? You had better show up in the next few minutes or else!_" Satsuki angrily thought as she scanned the crowd around her in the stands for any sign of the blonde before shaking her head in the negative towards Yakumo.

"_Naruto-kun where are you? It's not like you to be late let alone this late! If you don't show up soon I'm sure Tou-san will go ballistic!_" Haku nervously thought, throwing worried glances at her father whose eye started twitching.

"_The hell are you brat!? I didn't wait for an hour in the morning to get these seats just to see you not show! I swear if you lose because you forgot that the finals were today I'll cut you down so hard my great grandchildren, I mean YOUR GRANDCHILDREN will have scars!_" Zabuza angrily ranted and threatened in his head, though for a brief second he pictured cute little babies with a mix of Haku and Naruto's features which he quickly got rid of, the thought of Naruto and Haku 'doing the deed' making his eye twitch.

"_Tsk. Figures the loser would get cold feet. But if he doesn't show it'll work out for me, I just need to show them all how superior I am to them._" Sasuke thought, sneaking glances at Mito and quickly grew angry seeing that she was most likely fretting over her late brother.

"_Of course he'd be late. The dead last can't even manage to make it to a preplanned event on time, how embarrassing. It does fit a loser like him though._" Menma thought with a smirk on his face seeing as he had less competition to sweep through.

"It's alright you guys. Ignore the people that are in the stands, they aren't the ones that you want to try and impress. Direct your attention towards the 'Kage's Box' and the try to impress the people there, they are the ones who will be judging and determining if you are worthy of being a chūnin." Hayate said, getting the genin to tense slightly and straighten out their backs, focusing on the direction Hayate gestured towards.

Looking down at the genin gathered below Minato couldn't help but worry, seeing that Naruto had yet to arrive. He knew from the reports that he got from Anko that he was rather prompt when it came to meetings so seeing that he was late made Minato worry about his son. As he released a sigh the Kazekage with his guards entered the 'Kage's Box', Minato quickly greeting them.

"Ah! Kazekage-dono, welcome!" Minato said with a large smile on his face.

Seeing such a reaction from a Kage, the Kazekage couldn't help but let a small smirk form on his face.

"Hokage-dono, it's a pleasure to be sitting in the same room with someone of your stature. You honor me just by allowing me to sit beside you." The Kazekage said humbly as Minato just rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Please, no need to be so formal, we're allies aren't we? Please, take a seat! The tournament is about to begin." Minato said, as the Kazekage nodded and took the seat next to his.

As he was about sit himself, Raido Namiashi appeared next to him, quickly informing him of the situation.

"Hokage-sama. We haven't been able to find a trace of Naruto anywhere in the village. It appears that he hasn't returned yet." Raido reported, getting a sad nod from Minato.

"Alright, it can't be helped. Tell Hayate that he's clear to begin the matches and to move Naruto's match with Menma and Sasuke to the end." Minato said, getting a nod from Raido as he disappeared and reappeared next to Hayate using **Shunshin**.

"Hayate, Hokage-sama said that we're clear. Just move Naruto's match to the end." Raido said getting a nod from Hayate.

Seeing that he couldn't stall for any more time, Minato took a deep breath before he addressed the entirety of the stadium.

"Thank you everyone for coming to Konoha's chūnin selection exam! I'm very sorry to have kept you all waiting, but we will not start the main tournament matches! Who will emerge victorious between the 11 genin who have made it through the preliminaries! Please! Stay and watch until the very end!" Minato said, his voice echoing through the stadium as applause and cheer exploded, making him smile at the amount of energy that the crowd had.

As he sat back down, the Kazekage gave him a curious glance before speaking.

"11 Hokage-dono? If that is the case, then there seems to be a competitor missing." He said, making Minato lose his smile and respond with a crucial stare, the Kazekage quieting down after seeing it.

As the crowd was going wild around them, Hayate turned to the genin gathered around him and showed them a bracket. At first they were a little confused seeing as they had already memorized it beforehand, but looking closely, the genin saw that the times of the matches have been swapped slightly.

"_Tsk. Of course he'd get special treatment._" Menma thought, giving the bracket that had him in it a glare.

Getting nods from the genin, Hayate put away the bracket and was about to start the matches but was interrupted by Narumi.

"Hayate-sensei! What about Naru-nii? He isn't here yet!" Narumi asked, getting the other genin to stiffen up seeing as she voiced the question that danced in their thoughts.

"Ah, if Naruto doesn't appear by the start of his match, he will lose by default." Hayate explained, getting a nervous nod from Narumi as Mito and Yakumo silently prayed that he'd show up soon.

Seeing as there were no more questioning expressions on the faces of the genin, Hayate coughed slightly before he addressed them.

"Alright you guys, this is the final stage of the exam. The area that you're going to be battling in is different but the same rules from the preliminaries still apply. You will all fight until one of you accepts defeat, is rendered unconscious, or killed. I will intervene if I deem that the fight is over, understand?" Hayate said, getting nods from the genin in return.

Quickly glancing at all of them, he nodded before he moved to the center of the arena, getting the audience to quiet as he began speaking once again.

"Alright then, the first match will be between Narumi Uzumaki-Namikaze and Neji Hyuga. The two of you please stay here while the others clear out and head to the waiting room." Hayate said as the genin followed the orders, Mito and Yakumo wishing Narumi luck while Menma gave her a challenging smirk.

Once the two of them remained, they turned to each other as Hayate looked between them before bringing his arm up.

"The first match of Narumi Uzumaki-Namikaze vs. Neji Hyuga, begin!" Hayate shouted, dropping his arm as the two immediately jumped back from the other.

As soon as her feet hit the ground, Narumi threw a volley of kunai and shuriken at Neji, who easily countered with a volley of his own, Tenten having thrown much worse during training. As the sound of metal echoed through the arena, Neji was about to rush in to get close when a distinct 'poof' made its way to his ears. His eyes widened when he turned around only to be sent flying by a punch.

"W-What?" That was the only word that managed to make it out of Neji's mouth, not knowing what had just happened.

Seeing his opponent smirking at him, he narrowed his eyes. What was happening? Wasn't he fated to win this match and this tournament? How could someone that associated with his weak cousin actually land a solid blow on him when others before couldn't? Gritting his teeth, he activated his Byakugan as he glared at Narumi who instantly lost her smirk and glared back.

"Don't get cocky just because you landed a blow against me. I'm fated to win this battle, just like I was fated to win against Hinata-sama in the preliminaries." Neji said as Narumi bristled in anger.

"Would you cut it out with all that fate crap! You're just using it as an excuse to run away from your own problems!" Narumi shouted angrily, as Neji's glare intensified.

"What would you of all people know?! People are judged by their true nature! It is the way of the world! That is why we have the elite, and that is why we have outcasts. We can change our physical appearance and improve our skills with training and studying, but ultimately, we are judged by what we cannot change. What can't be changed must be endured. We are who we are, and we must live with it!" Neji said as he rushed in to meet a stunned Narumi.

Snapping out of her stupor, Narumi caught one of Neji's hands as he lashed out with it. But as she was about to throw a punch of her own Neji, with a quick thrust of his fingers, landed a blow on. Striking once on her shoulder, making her eyes go wide when a strange numbness appeared, he ripped his hand free before landing another strike to her thigh, then to her abdomen before he quickened the pace of his strikes.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Stands)

"W-What? Tou-sama, that's…" A brown haired girl with the same pupil-less eyes around the age of 10 started before she trailed off, her eyes going wide at the sight of the technique before her.

"Yes Hanabi… there's no doubt he's using anything but that…" A man with the same eyes, Hiashi said, furrowing his brow as he looked at the boy land his strikes on Narumi.

"_Hizashi… There's no doubt about it, your son is a genius… I'm sorry my brother…_" The man thought, seeing the skilled display of **Juken** in front of him.

Seated next to Satsuki, Kiba, and a few other of their friends Hinata put on a worried face as she saw what Neji was doing.

"_Narumi-chan you can't let Neji-niisan finish that attack! Even you won't be able to continue if he's successful in executing it._" Hinata thought as worry seeped deeper into her face.

Seeing that Hinata grew more and more worried the more strikes Neji landed on Narumi, Satsuki put a hand on her shoulder to ease her worries.

"Hinata, it'll be alright. Narumi's always been a tough cookie, something like this won't take her down. Just believe in her and trust in her abilities." Satsuki said getting a wide eyed reaction in return for her comforting words.

Nodding slightly, she turned back to the battle as she closed her hands together in a prayer-like gesture.

"_Narumi-chan, you can do it! I know you can!_"

In another section of the arena, the jōnin sensei were discussing the hot topic at hand and who they believed would take home the win. Though, watching the match, they couldn't help but wince seeing as Narumi was going to be subjected to a brutal attack by Neji.

"Things don't look too good for Narumi." Asuma said as the others nodded their heads.

"I'm afraid Narumi-chan isn't going to be winning this match. Neji-kun is one of the most talented genin that I've had the pleasure to train." Gai said, a small smile on his face from seeing his student excel in front of his fellow jōnin.

While the other jōnin were chatting with each other, Kakashi remained silent, his eyes never leaving his little sister figure and her fight.

"_Narumi, I know you can do it. Prove to everyone that you are strong._"

Suddenly, a flash of crimson caught the eye of a few jōnin as they smiled knowing there was only one person who had such hair. Arriving in the 'Kage's Box' was none other then Kushina Uzumaki, who beamed a smile at the Kazekage and Minato before she skipped over and plopped onto the chair beside him.

"Things look a little tough for Umi-chan don't you think Mina-kun?" Kushina said, her eyes never leaving the sight of her daughter getting attacked.

"Yeah, but this is Narumi we're talking about. She'll pull through no matter what." Minato said with the upmost conviction in his voice as his wife gave him a wide smile.

"I certainly believe that your daughter has quite the skill set considering that she has just graduated from the academy a few months ago." The Kazekage said, getting a smile from the two.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Arena)

"Guh!" Narumi cried out, pain seeping into every part of her body from the strikes that Neji was connecting.

She knew how the **Juken** worked, Hinata always talked about it when they trained together but she never actually faced it like this. When Hinata landed her hits during training, she would just feel a little sting like from a wasp or bee, but every time Neji landed a hit, it felt like she was being stabbed with a burning needle or kunai. She was broken out of her thoughts as Neji abruptly stopped his assault around 32 hits and froze in his stance before her.

"**Hakke Rokujūyon Shō**!" He called out, before landing the remaining 32 strikes faster then Narumi could follow, pain exploding as he connected his strikes.

With the final strike, he sent Narumi flying across the arena where she laid panting and unmoving.

"Like I said before we improve our skills with training and studying, but ultimately, we are limited by what fate dictates." Neji said as he deactivated his Byakugan and leveled a glare at Narumi's attempt to stand.

Narumi had never experienced the pain she was feeling right now ever in her entire life, it was like trying to walk with red-hot needles embedded in her body. Gritting her teeth, she shakily managed to get to up, standing and panting as she directed an angry glare at a mildly surprised Neji.

"I've already told you! I've had enough about your stupid concept of fate! We are limited by what we can do and there are some who are more talented then others, but it isn't up to fate to decide whether or not they are weak or strong, that's something that we decide for ourselves!" Narumi shouted, her eyes glaring at Neji full of hate and anger.

"Don't you understand!? Take me instance; I'm a prodigy, a genius, even by the standards of Hyuga clan! But no matter how skilled I become, I will always be in service to the Main House as a member of the Branch House!" Neji shouted, his eyes burning in rage as he unconsciously activated his Byakugan.

"Then change that! You're the only one who has any power over yourself! You're just using fate as an excuse to run away from your problem rather then face them head on, just like a coward!" Narumi shouted back as Neji's eyes darkened.

Without a word, Neji rushed in to engage Narumi once again. Again, striking her tenketsu, he slammed his palm into her chest as her eyes widened and she spat out a mouthful of blood. Dropping to her knees, Narumi clutched her chest as Neji looked down at her, eyes full of contempt.

"Know your place. Fate has decided me as the winner and you as the loser." Neji said in a cold tone, as he glared down at Narumi.

But his glare vanished when Narumi lost the pained expression on her face as she smirked. Suddenly, she disappeared in a poof of smoke as Neji saw a few chakra signatures around him. Quickly scanning the area he cursed as he saw them, Narumi and her clones.

"Tch. **Kage Bunshin**." He said before he was on the defensive.

Two of the clones rushed towards Neji, one aiming high and the other low. Jumping and shifting his body, Neji was able to narrowly escape the attack but his eyes widened when he was kicked in the stomach and sent flying back. Managing to right himself he struck with lightning fast strikes and dispelled two of the clones before one grabbed his arm and locked it behind him.

Going with the momentum that the clone had, Neji kicked off the ground and spun, removing his arm and taking care of the clone that grabbed him. But as he reached the ground, a group of clones where already on him. Closing his eyes, he held his palms outward as he spun.

"_**Kaiten**_!" He thought as he spun, a dome of chakra repelling and blasting away the clones as Narumi widened her eyes at the jutsu.

"W-What is that?" Narumi asked, shock evident on her face from seeing such a jutsu. Gritting her teeth, she narrowed her eyes as she knew she wouldn't be able to hide her more powerful jutsu now that things have gotten rather intense.

"Hmph. Thought that you had won?" Neji said with a smirk on his face, sneering at Narumi.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Stands)

"_I-Impossible! Thats...!_" Hiashi thought, his eye widening at seeing Neji perform a jutsu reserved for the Main House.

"T-Tou-sama, that's...!" Hanabi started, unable to finish seeing as she had nothing that could vocalize her jumbled thoughts.

"Yes Hanabi... The **Kaiten** is a Main House technique, only passed through the heirs of the Hyuga clan." Hiashi said, as Hanabi numbly nodded her head.

"_Yet to think he could master it on his own... Truly he is a genius..._" Hiashi thought, as he tightened his hand into a small fist.

While Hiashi was in mild shock along with Hanabi, Tenten was smirking seeing her teammate put up his 'absolute defense'.

"_Haha, poor girl doesn't know what she's got herself into. With his Byakugan, Neji's field of view is nearly 360 degrees, being able to see virtually any perceivable angle of attack. With that, he's able to extend a large amount of chakra throughout his tenketsu while spinning basically stopping any attack from connecting. That paired with his mastery over __**Juken**__ using his __**Kaiten**__ surpasses even Gaara's defense as a real absolute defense._" Tenten thought, a larger smirk seeing as her teammate was going to win this tournament without much trouble.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Arena)

Down on the field, once she snapped out of her stupor, Narumi send another wave of clones to attack Neji trying to find some hole in his defensive, anything that could give her an edge to strike back. But like last time, every time a pair of clones got close they've be blown away by his **Kaiten**.

"Heh, painful isn't it? Being unable to get anywhere close to me, no matter what angle you try to attack from. You should just accept your worthlessness before someone you can't possibly beat. Beating and surpassing natural talent through hard work is just an illusion." Neji said, his smirk now a sneer as Narumi started to tremble in fury.

Before she could react, Neji once again rushed her down as he tried to jump back only to wince as pain shot through her leg. Landing a palm strike to her chest once again, Neji took up his stance and repeated the same series of strikes once more.

"**Hakke Rokujūyon Shō**!" He shouted, as he sent Narumi flying and slamming into the stadium walls.

Once she hit the ground, she remained motionless as a small pool of blood started to form near her mouth. The stadium quieted seeing the daughter of their Kage get beaten down in such a brutal and one-sided manner. Hayate was also shocked but broke out of his stupor as he started to raise his hand to signal Neji as the winner, he stopped however when he felt something he hadn't felt in nearly 13 years.

"...That's it..." Narumi whispered as she remained laying face down in the dirt, getting a shocked look from Neji and Hayate.

"T-That's impossible! You've been hit with 128 strikes, all of them connecting to your tenketsu! How can you still be conscious?!" Neji shouted, his eyes wide in disbelief.

Slowly, Narumi shakily stood up, her face overshadowed by her bangs.

"Oh? You're speaking as if you had some way to actually land a blow on me." Neji taunted, getting only silence in return.

Releasing a sigh, he was about to take up his stance once more but widened his eyes as he saw something that made him sweat.

Slowly, orange chakra started to spiral around her like a breeze before it became a twister which shredded the ground. But what really made Neji sweat wasn't the fact that she had access to her chakra, which she shouldn't have in the first place, it was when she lifted her head specifically her pupils which were now slitted like a foxes.

"I'm going to crush that concept you have of fate into dust, and you along with it." Narumi whispered as she drew her fist back, making Neji gulp as he saw the chakra that was built up in it.

Before he could react, she brought it down and the result made everyone tremble in their seats, literally.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

As the tremor reverberated through the stadium, the crowd immediately recognized what Narumi had done and connected her to the only other person who could do that.

"T-Thats...!"

"I-Impossible! She took on an apprentice?!"

"N-No way!?"

Out of all of them, one person in particular felt dread fill her stomach.

"S-She's... She's Tsunade-sama's apprentice..." Tenten whispered, her eyes wide in disbelief as she not only doubted but mocked her idol's student.

Back with the jōnin, their eyes went wide when they saw what had just happened. They knew who that technique belonged to and they couldn't believe that she had taught it to Narumi. While the others sat speechless and stunned, Kakashi cracked a smile behind his mask as he spoke.

"Well, looks like things are over now." He said with an eye smile as the other jōnin watched intently.

"Ah! Tsunade taught Umi-chan her secret!" Kushina said, her eyes wide in disbelief.

"Haha, well looks like things are over for Neji-kun. There's no way Umi-chan is going to let him off easy." Minato said, wincing a bit as a tinge of pity filled his heart.

"Hmm..." Was all the Kazekage sounded out, his eyes intently studying the blonde below.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Once her fist hit the ground, it was like an earthquake was set of, the ground exploding in a violent shower of debris. Under the cover of the cloud, Narumi created five clones and immediately sent them to attack with her.

When the ground exploded, Neji had to close and shield his eyes from the insane amount of debris that was sent flying in his direction. He knew that it was a part of his opponent's plan, but he had to protect his eyes at all costs, they were his key to winning the tournament. But in that one moment, the few seconds that he closed his eyes, his chances at victory were shattered.

Opening his eyes, they immediately went wide when a group of Narumi surrounded him. Quickly, he unleashed his **Kaiten** once more to get some distance from the blonde. What happened next would never leave his memory or the memory of anyone watching the battle.

Tightening her stance, the group of Narumi simply drew their fists back and smashed it into the dome, making the jaws of everyone drop. Gritting her teeth as she felt the dome start to grind away her knuckles, she roared as her clones followed suit as they shattered the dome like glass, Neji's eyes widening at the feat.

Spinning on the ball of her foot, Narumi finished the match by delivering a series of bone shattering kicks. The first kick smashing into Neji's ribs and sending him into the air. Spinning once again, she jumped and lashed out with her other leg as her heel connected to his stomach as Neji was sent higher into the air. Finally, Narumi spun a final time as her foot connected to his jaw and sent him flying to the opposite end of the arena as the crowd went silent at the brutal attack.

"**Hienrenkyaku**." Narumi whispered as she dropped to the ground with the elegance only a kunoichi had.

As silence reigned over the stadium, Neji groaned a little as he managed to lift his head as his vision blurred and spun. Slowly, Narumi made her way towards him before stopping in the center of the arena before she spoke, directing her speech to him.

"Like I told you before, it isn't up to fate to decide whether or not they are weak or strong, it's something that we decide for ourselves. You said that you were fated to win this battle right? Well what happened? That's right, you lost. Don't you dare blame fate or destiny for your own problems. If you have the will and the drive, you can change fate yourself. You should be able to, after all, you are a genius aren't you?" Narumi said as Neji widened his eyes at the end of her speech.

Slowly a small smile came to his face as he rested his head on the ground. Once he did, Hayate announced Narumi as the winner of the match, as the crowd exploded in roaring applause and cheer. Flinching at the sudden increase in volume, Narumi could only bashfully scratch the back of her head as she waved to the crowd.

After a few minutes of basking in the limelight, Narumi skipped off the field as the medics tended to Neji. As she made it to the waiting room, she was glomped by her older sister who fretted over her injuries.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Judge's area)

"Oh! She certainly has talent doesn't she!"

"I agree! Not only is she a looker, she's also quite skilled. I give my recommendation for a promotion to her."

"I also believe she has what it takes to become a chūnin, her opponent however, I do not think he is mentally or emotionally ready."

"That's quite true, though he seems to have changed slightly from hearing her words. Maybe he will show the same and hopefully even greater promise next time."

After witnessing the match, the judges conversed among themselves about the potential of a promotion of the two. Most agreeing that Narumi had chūnin potential judging from her match.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

The jōnin in the stands couldn't believe what they had just witnessed. The 'Rookie of the Year' from the year prior had been beaten by a genin fresh from the academy.

"I-Impossible..." Was all that left Gai's mouth, not believing that the genius who was a part of his team was beaten.

"As expected Umi-chan." Kakashi said with an eye smile as the others just smiled wryly at him.

In the 'Kage's Box' Kushina was ecstatic that Narumi had won her match in such a splendid way, cheering even louder then the crowd was.

"Yeah! You did it Umi-chan!" She shouted, as Minato just sweat dropped at her behavior.

While the two were praising their daughter for her victory, the Kazekage just smirked under his veil.

"_Interesting... Tsunade passed on her knowledge of using chakra to enhance her strength to her huh..._"

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

"Umi-chan! Are you ok!? Come'on! We need to get you to the infirmary!" Mito said in a panicky tone as Narumi sweat dropped at her sister's, well big sister-ness.

"You sure you're alright?" Menma asked, walking up to the two, who got his answer by the grin on his little sister's face.

Once they all calmed down, they waited for the arena to get repaired before the next match could be started. As they waited they decided to ask about what happened down there during the match.

"So Tsunade-baachan taught you her super strength huh!" Mito said getting a wide grin from her little sister, a little jealous that she was the first one who got to know the secret behind their godmother's legendary strength.

"Don't worry Mito, we'll get to show off what we learned soon enough." Menma said with a smirk as Mito smiled back, Narumi also grinning excited to see what her siblings had learned.

"But if you learned it and had it all this time, why didn't you just end the match sooner?" Menma asked as Narumi sighed.

"I wanted to keep it a secret for as long as possible, but that guy really got on my nerves so I couldn't help but want to beat him down!" Narumi said, scowling slightly at the thought of Neji.

"That's for sure, if you had used Baachan's strength during that combo, he'd be nothing but a bag of broken bones!" Menma said while shivering as Narumi and Mito also shivered slightly.

"Yeah, that's exactly why I turned it off. I wanted to beat him not kill him." Narumi said, getting nods from her siblings.

As they finished their conversation, the next round of matches were called, making them leave the waiting room to the balcony that oversaw the arena.

"Alright. The next match will be between Kankuro and Gaara of the sand." Hayate said as Kankuro immediately raised his hand.

"Proctor! I withdraw!" He hastily said with a nervous expression on his face, not that Hayate could blame him, he had seen firsthand what Gaara could do. Nodding his head he raised his hand.

"Kankuro forfeits, therefore the winner by default is Gaara." Hayate said as everyone started booing at the cowardly act, only if they knew.

"Alright then, moving on. The next match will be between Shikamaru Nara and Temari of the sand." Hayate said, as Temari made her way down to the arena.

Sighing Shikamaru quickly went over various scenarios in his head, each one ending in him losing in the end. Closing his eyes, he raised his hand as everyone started to boo him as well.

But before he could call out to Hayate, Menma shoved him over the railing as he fell onto his back.

"Don't you think about forfeiting Shika! I gave you a helping hand and a push in the right direction!" Menma said with a grin on his face as Shikamaru's eye started twitching at the troublesome blonde.

Looking a little confused, Hayate just shrugged before he raised his hand.

"The next match between Shikamaru Nara and Temari of the sand. Begin!" With that Temari instantly rushed towards Shikamaru with her fan trailing behind her.

As soon as she reached him, she swung down, a cloud of dust covering the area where she hit. But as soon as it cleared, Shikamaru stood unharmed on top of two kunai that he embedded into the wall.

"Man, I really don't want to fight. I also don't really care about becoming a chūnin either, but I sure as heck won't lose to a girl." Shikamaru said as he lashed out with a kick which made Temari jump back.

"_Man... Why did I have to fight a girl of all people. If I win, then I beat up a girl. If I lose, I lost to a girl. Either way it's a lose-lose for me._" Shikamaru thought as he let his head drop.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Up in the stands of the arena, Ino along with Sakura had been watching the matches without much interest, that is until, at least for Ino, Shikamaru was pushed into the ring. As she started to cheer him on, her other teammate appeared.

"Hey Ino, is this seat taken?" Choji asked, getting a head nod from Ino before he sat down.

"It's kind of funny isn't it? Shikamaru being in the finals, he really doesn't fit in there." Choji said as Ino giggled a little at the truth behind his words.

"Yeah, he's lucky that Menma-kun pushed him in or else he would have lost by forfeit. But still, the odds of him winning aren't very high especially since he's fighting her, but he can still pull through if he comes up with a killer strategy!" Ino said, getting a nod from Choji and a questioning look from Sakura.

"A killer strategy?" Sakura asked, getting a smirk from Ino and a smile from Choji.

"Just you wait Forehead, Shikamaru will blow you away with his brains! Go Shikamaru!" Ino said to Sakura before she turned and shouted at her teammate.

With the jōnin sensei, after seeing Narumi's amazing comeback, they were excited to see what Shikamaru had in store for them. They knew from Asuma as well as Shikaku that he was a slacker but maybe he'd surprise them.

"Don't you all worry, he may be unmotivated and lazy, but that guy is something else. Just watch and you'll be amazed, trust me." Asuma said as the others nodded their heads and focused on the match at hand.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Hearing his teammate, Shikamaru couldn't stop his eye from twitching after hearing the rather loud and obnoxious cheers that she directed towards him.

Smirking a little seeing his inner conflict, Temari drew her fan once more and swung, a wave of wind crashing into the spot where Shikamaru stood. Though, she quickly lost her smirk and gained an irritated look seeing as he was gone once the dust settled.

"Tch. He's good at running, I'll give him that." She muttered under her breath.

While Temari was scanning the area for any sign of him, Shikamaru just sighed while he sat in one of the trees that dotted the arena. Looking into the sky, he just looked on with envy at the immense and unlimited freedom that the clouds seemed to possess. Just as he was about to get comfy, he had to change location once he heard her.

"**Ninpo: Kamaitachi no Jutsu**!" She shouted as she swung her fan, a wide blast of cutting wind racing to the tree line.

As it hit, it started shredding and uprooting the trees, another dust cloud resulting from the jutsu. But as she was about to relax a little, Temari saw something in the edge of her vision, a shadow sped out of the cloud and raced towards her, forcing her to jump back to get distance from the jutsu, knowing what would happen once it connected with her. Though, the further away she got the more Temari started to sweat, seeing as the shadow wasn't letting up in its pursuit of her.

But suddenly it stopped abruptly and started to shrink back to the cloud of dust that he came from, getting a sigh of relief from Temari as she drew a line in the ground to mark where it had reached.

"_Looks like this is the farthest that, that shadow will go. Interesting, it looks like his shadow seems to be able to shrink and stretch according to his will. When it was chasing me earlier, it was a lot thicker then it is now._" Temari thought as a smirk came to her face.

Looking at dust cloud that had now settled into nothingness, Temari shot Shikamaru a smirk as a bead of sweat dropped down his face.

"You're shadow. There's a limit to how much it can make it stretch and shrink, isn't there. I just noticed it now, but you can't make it stretch further then the normal surface area of your normal shadow." Temari said with a smirk on her face as Shikamaru gained a shocked expression before he smirked back.

"Heh, that's right. Though I'm kind of shocked that you managed to figure it out so fast." Shikamaru said as Temari remained silent, opting to calculate the total distance that his shadow could travel.

As she was in thought, he quickly threw a volley of kunai at her, which she blew away using her fan. Bracing himself, he used his arms to shield himself from the cutting wind as his eyes darted to the positions of his kunai. A small smirk forming on his face as the sun began to sink lower into the sky.

"_He's using the shadow of the stadium to augment the length of his shadow. But even with the added length... 15 meters and 32 centimeters..._" Temari calculated, getting a knowing look from her brother in the balcony.

"_Temari's already marked and calculated the distance of his shadow with her fan. Heh, this match has already been decided. She's a lot better at long range then she is at short range, no wonder everyone thinks she's genius tactician._" Kankuro thought as the Shikamaru repeated his earlier action of throwing a volley of kunai, which Temari blew away.

"You know fighting at long range is only going to end badly for you." Temari said with a smirk as Shikamaru sighed.

Temari's hand twitched for a second which Shikamaru noticed as he widened his eyes and dove for the cover of the trees as she fully opened her fan.

"Hiding isn't going to do you any good! **Kamaitachi no Jutsu**!" She shouted as another blast of cutting wind shredded the tree that Shikamaru was hiding behind.

Quickly shedding his outer jacket, he tied it to a kunai and waited out another assault of wind that battered the tree that he was taking cover behind. As it died and a dust cloud replaced it, he threw the kunai towards Temari which was deflected by her fan, as she jumped back, his shadow once again racing towards her. A smirk on her face, she was about to relax but panicked slightly once it crossed the line she had drawn.

"_W-What?! But that's impossible! His shadow shouldn't be able to stretch any further!_" But she was broken out of her musing when she noticed that the sun had set slightly, adding to his shadow's length.

"_So that was his plan. He was buying time for the sun to set, so it would add to his shadow's length. But still, even with the extra length it shouldn't be able to reach me at this distance._" Temari thought with a smirk on her face as the shadow indeed stopped in its tracks.

Gripping her fan once more, she was about to swing once more but someone's voice made its way to her.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Kankuro let out a sigh of relief seeing that his sister managed to avoid getting snagged by the kid's shadow. But as he relaxed, he noticed something that made him nervous. The kunai from earlier was floating in the air! The kid had made a parachute using his shirt, and that added another shadow for him to use.

"Temari! Above you!" He shouted, panic evident in his voice as he saw Temari going for another attack.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

"Temari! Above you!"

Hearing the voice of her brother, Temari froze and her head snapped upwards as they widened once they locked on the makeshift parachute.

"Tch!" She quipped, quickly jumping back as Shikamaru's shadow suddenly latched onto the shadow of the parachute and rushed forward.

As she dodged the shadow, it made unusual and seemingly random turns that forced Temari to move at strange angles. But before she could figure out what he was doing, she froze and dropped her fan. Disbelief in her eyes, she slowly looked down and saw that she had indeed been captured by Shikamaru's shadow.

"Whew, finally.** Kagemane no Jutsu**, success." Shikamaru said with a smirk on his face as disbelief spread throughout the crowd.

"W-What? How?" Temari asked, unable to see the exact reason as to why she was caught in his jutsu.

"Heh, figures you wouldn't be able to see since you're caught in my **Kagemane no Jutsu**. I'll show you.**"** Shikamaru said as he turned his head around, making Temari mimic the action.

When she saw it, her eyes widened in shock. Littered about in a seemingly random way, were the kunai that he had thrown earlier, but they were all connected to the shadow that currently had her immobilized.

"W-What?" Was all that Temari could say, not believing what she had seen. Didn't she blow those kunai away in a random way? There couldn't have been any possible way that he had manipulated them to land as they were now. They were lined up, and curved slightly to form a snaking trail that encircled her.

"Hey, don't look at me. I'm just as surprised as you are, for them to have landed like this, it's all luck." Shikamaru said as he stood up and rolled his shoulders as Temari shot him a glare.

"Well, looks like it's time to finish this." He continued as Temari tensed, she was powerless in this position now. Slowly, Shikamaru raised his hand before he did something that made everyone drop their jaws.

"I give up." He deadpanned as an out of place wind blew, everyone dropping their jaws with their eyes turning white and blank.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

"What..."

"Just..."

"Happened?"

Mito started, Narumi continued, and Menma finished; unable to comprehend why Shikamaru would forfeit when he had such an advantage.

With Ino, Sakura and Choji; they had similar reactions as Ino started shouting at Shikamaru, demanding to know why he quit. Sakura just had a confused look on her face as she tried to grasp what was going on in his head. Choji on the other hand just laughed.

"I knew it, it wouldn't be Shikamaru if he didn't give up in a time like that." He said while laughing lightly.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

"Wh-What?" Temari asked, disbelief on her face after hearing her opponent give up.

"I give up. This has gone on way too long for my liking. I never even wanted to fight in the first place. I'm pretty much out of chakra from keeping my **Kagemane** up for so long. I even had about 100 more moves planned out but guess I ran out of time. But most of all, I'm just getting tired of this. One match is more then enough for me." Shikamaru said as Hayate smirked slightly.

"_He's definitely got chūnin potential._" Hayate thought as he brought his hand up.

"Winner of the match, Temari!" He called out as the crowd broke out of their stupor and cheered for the Suna kunoichi.

"Man, I need a nap." Shikamaru said as he left the field, Temari doing the same after a few seconds of staring at his back.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

"Th-That idiot! He just gave up his chance at becoming a chūnin!" Ino shouted, nearly pulling her hair out at the outrageous action of her teammate.

"Haha, Ino you know that's just how Shikamaru is." Choji told her, popping a few more chips into his mouth as he smiled.

With the jōnin, they were speechless. The forfeit by Shikamaru stunned them but it didn't compare to the amount of intellect that he had just showcased.

"Geez, he really isn't motivated is he?" Kurenai asked with a doubtful look on her face after seeing the display.

"Haha, I don't really know either..." Asuma admitted with a wry smile on his face.

While they were outwardly doubting his motivation, inwardly they were impressed by his strategy and planning, knowing that it was definitely above genin level.

With the judges, they shared similar thoughts as the jōnin, knowing that he had chūnin potential in him.

After the match, there was a quick recess held for the crowd to use the restrooms and stretch their legs. But it was also a time for the judges to confer with one another. As they were having a brief conference, in the 'Kage's Box' the Kazekage started a conversation with Minato.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Kage's Box)

"Hokage-dono, you sure have some promising genin." The Kazekage said as Minato gave him a wide grin.

"Thank you Kazekage-dono! You're genin are great as well, that kunoichi is definitely quite skilled!" Minato said as the Kazekage nodded his head.

As they conversed with one another, eventually the Kazekage asked Minato something that really shook him and Kushina.

"Hokage-dono, as you know my sons haven't had a match or rather Gaara didn't get a match. I see that we have a 1 vs. 1 vs. 1 as the finale, as such I was wondering if Gaara could instead fight one of them, specifically Naruto." He said as Minato and Kushina widened their eyes.

"But isn't that a bit unfair to the crowd and the genin? They were waiting for this fight weren't they?" Minato asked as the Kazekage nodded.

"And what about Naru-chan? He won't be informed about this change!" Kushina said, as the Kazekage nodded once more.

"That is true, but I would like to ask this favor from you, as your new ally. Will you allow Gaara to fight Naruto." He asked once more as Minato furrowed his brow, Kushina looking at him with worry.

"Will you allow me and my wife to think about it for a little bit?" Minato asked as the Kazekage gave him an eye smile.

"Of course Hokage-dono."

After a few minutes, the recess was about to end and Minato reached an answer.

"We... We will accept your request, we are allies so we should do favors like this from time to time." Minato said, though he was greatly worried for Naruto, having seen what Gaara could do. Alongside him, Kushina shared the same concerns, knowing that she sensed something foreign yet similar in Gaara.

"Thank you Hokage-dono! You do not know how much this means to me! Ah, you as well Kushina-dono!" The Kazekage said as he bowed slightly, making Minato and Kushina embarrassed.

Finalizing the rooster, he stood up as the crowd focused on him as he stepped towards them.

"Everyone! Please, I have an announcement to make!" He said as everyone quieted down and focused on him.

"I know that many of you were excited about the final match seeing as it was a 1 vs. 1 vs. 1. But I'm afraid that will not be happening." As he finished, there were disappointed murmurs through the crowd.

"I have decided, with the Kazekage, the judges and my wife that we will be splitting off one of the participants of that match and pairing them with the Kazekage's son, Gaara who had a match forfeited in his favor earlier." He said, as the crowd got excited seeing as one of the people they didn't get to see battle have another chance to show them what he could do.

Seeing the crowd get reenergized, Minato could help but smile at the scene.

"Therefore, we will have Gaara vs. my son Naruto as the final match!" He said, at that the crowd went silent.

The reason being that he said the name of someone who they didn't have much interaction, let alone knowledge of. Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, the oldest of his sibling and the most enigmatic. Though silence was replaced with curiosity as they were excited over the prospect of seeing the elusive blonde battle.

Having settled the matter, Minato nodded to Hayate to start the next match.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Waiting Room)

Having heard the newest announcement from their father, the Uzumaki-Namikaze siblings couldn't believe what they had just heard. Their father had paired their older brother against that monster from the sand. Even Menma felt a little pity for his older brother.

"Tou-san... What will happen to Naru-nii...?" Narumi said with a terrified look in her eyes as she quickly looked at Gaara.

"Naruto-nii..." Mito said with a worried tone as she also snuck a glance at Gaara.

Their fears were realized when they saw a maniacal and bloodthirsty grin on his face as a small swirl of sand surrounded him.

"Tch... Hopefully that loser will at least wear him down for me later..." Menma said as he also looked at Gaara.

The other genin shared worried looks, seeing as Naruto was going to fight a literal monster soon.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Hayate once again resumed his position in the center of the ring as he called out for the next participants.

"The next match: Yakumo Kurama vs. Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze." As the two made their way down to the arena.

Once settled in the center, facing each other they gave a smile and wished each other good luck before Hayate raised his arm. Glancing quickly at the two of them, he nodded.

"Alright, let the match begin!" He said as Yakumo instantly went on the offensive, shocking her best friend.

Stopping in front of Mito, Yakumo lashed out with a flurry of blows that Mito dodged without much trouble though a punch did graze her cheek. Narrowing her eyes, Mito caught one of Yakumo's fists as it made its way to her head and delivered a palm strike to her abdomen, Yakumo's eyes widening from the impact.

Staggering back a little, Yakumo quickly tilted to the side as Mito's fist flew past her head. But she had to duck as Mito spun in the air using the momentum of her punch to try and kick her head. But her assault didn't end there as Mito delivered another downward punch that Yakumo blocked, though her arms buckled from the force of the blow.

Shifting her body, Yakumo pushed off Mito's hand and slammed her shoulder into Mito's chest, but Yakumo widened her eyes when the redhead dispersed into a cloud of smoke.

"**Kage Bunshin**?! When?!" Yakumo said, her eyes widening as she lost sight of Mito.

Still shocked, Yakumo barely dodged out of the way as a pair of hands shot out of the ground in an attempt to grab her ankles. Still in the air Yakumo rushed through a series of seals before putting her hand to her mouth.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa**!" She shouted as a high pressure stream of water bore into the spot that the hands erupted from.

Landing, Yakumo cursed under her breath as another plume of smoke erupted out of the ground. Flashing through another set of seals, Yakumo was interrupted when Mito suddenly appeared behind her and grabbed her arm, twisting it behind her back. Wincing, Yakumo smirked as she brought her hand up in half a seal.

"**Meimu Jun**." She whispered as Mito winced, feeling the world start to revolve around her as she tightened her grip on Yakumo only to feel air, even though she was clearly holding onto her.

Widening her eyes, she quickly put her hands together and sent a pulse of chakra that disrupted the genjutsu. Her senses screaming at her to duck, she did as Yakumo appeared above her with a kick that was intended for her head. Quickly rolling onto her hands, Mito kicked upwards and caught Yakumo in the stomach as she winced, but slowly smirked as her hands were in a seal.

Widening her eyes Mito tried to get away, but Yakumo beat her as she flipped off her foot and dropped her knees onto her stomach.

"**Toko Sangeki**!" Yakumo shouted as Mito froze, her eyes widening as her world started to shift and eventually turned into an endless sea of black.

(Scene Change - Toko Sangeki: Mito's Illusion)

Darkness, that was all that Mito could see. Cursing under her breath, she knew that Yakumo was most dangerous when it came to genjutsu and now she was stuck in one of them. But before she could do anything, she heard a voice that made her freeze.

"Mito." It said as she slowly turned around, her cerulean eyes staring into the navy blue of her brother's.

"N-Naruto-nii?" She said, taking a step forward but she managed to stop herself. Knowing that it was an illusion.

"N-No! This isn't real! This is just one of Yakumo-chan's genjutsu!" She shouted, closing her eyes as she put her hands together to release a pulse of chakra. But before she could, she felt a warm pair of hands grab hers.

Snapping her eyes open, she once again gazed into her brother's. But she flinched and shivered in fear when they bore no warmth or recognition, only hate and resentment.

"What? Did you expect me to wrap you up in a warm hug and pretend the last few years of you ignoring and abandoning me didn't exist?" Naruto said in a bone chilling tone, making Mito's eyes widen.

"N-Naruto-nii! It's not like that! I-I didn't want to but, but... I don't know... I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, please forgive me Aniki!" She shouted, tears starting to fall from her eyes only to feeling a sting on her cheek as her head snapped to the side.

He slapped her, and it hurt more then anything that she had ever experienced in her life.

"Don't you dare call me that. I am NOT your brother and you are NOT my sister. I don't have someone as heartless and inhuman as you for a sister." He said as he stood up, his cold eyes glaring into her very soul.

Mito couldn't feel anything else but heartbreak and agony seeing the look in her brother's eyes. Soon, tears freely made their way down her face as she started sobbing covering her face with her hands as her body trembled with each sob that escaped her lips.

"Don't you ever think about calling yourself my sister. My sister, the sister I loved like no other, left me a long time ago." He said as Mito snapped her head up, her eyes wide and overflowing with tears.

Soon, he started walking away as Mito tried to stand up, only to feel like her legs were made of lead. Frantically, she tried to reach out to him screaming his name as he got further and further away.

"Aniki! Please don't leave me! Aniki! Aniki please! Don't leave me behind! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! Aniki! ANIKI!" Mito screamed hysterically, reaching and grabbing in the direction that he slowly faded away into as her tears fell like a floodgate being opened.

Soon, only darkness remained as Mito curled up into a tight ball as she whimpered her brother's name, her tears never stopping. She had forgotten that she was trapped in a genjutsu designed to bring about a tragedy that she feared the most, the tragedy of being abandoned by her brother just like she had abandoned him all those years ago.

"Aniki... Please don't leave me... Don't leave Mito behind... Aniki..." Mito whimpered softly, with each passing second her voice getting younger, higher, and more desperate.

Soon, Mito had been reduced from a strong and confident 13 year old girl to a broken and afraid 5 year old girl. Hugging her knees to her chest as a strange cold started to seep into her body, Mito continued to replay the scene of her brother's harsh words, before he slapped her and gave her that soul piercing glare before fading away.

The more that the scene replayed, the more the darkness seemed to consume the surrounding area. Soon, Mito started to be consumed by the darkness of the area, the cold from before seeping into her very soul as she closed her eyes, a final and lone tear escaping.

"Aniki..." She whimpered one final time, before the cold and darkness took over. But suddenly, a strange warmth radiated and banished the cold inside of her.

"Mito-chan, why are you crying?" A familiar voice said, full of concern and warmth.

Hearing that voice, Mito snapped her head up and stared into the same navy blue eyes form before. But in the place of the hate and resentment from earlier, there was only love and concern.

"A-Aniki...?" She whispered, tears starting to build up once again in her eyes. But before they fell, a warm and gentle hand brushed them out of her eyes.

"Mito-chan, you know I don't like it when you cry. What's wrong?" Naruto said, as Mito sniffled before hugging and burying her face into his chest. He was here, her beloved older brother.

"Aniki, please don't leave Mito behind... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She whimpered, as she felt his lips softly press themselves on her head.

"There's no need to be sorry Mito-chan. You did nothing wrong." He whispered as she sniffed, shaking her head in the negative.

"I am sorry Aniki... I did something bad..." She whispered, burying her face deeper into his chest.

"Mito-chan... Everyone does something bad in their life, no matter how good of a person they are. When you do something bad, all you can do is apologize and try and made it up to whoever was affected. Now, stop crying ok?" Naruto said, as Mito nodded her head softly.

"Good, now don't you have something to do Mito-chan?" Naruto asked, making Mito's eyes go wide before she nodded.

"Mhmm... Aniki... Thank you." Mito said as she smiled, getting a small smile from her older brother as well before he leaned down and kissed her forehead as her face exploded in crimson, her eyes wide.

Soon, the darkness that consumed the space that surrounded her started to shatter as rays of light made their way through the cracks. Finally, the darkness shattered completely as Mito closed her eyes, warmth filling her entire being.

As the world started to fade away, a pair of crimson slitted eyes faintly appeared as a feminine voice echoed softly.

"_Hmph, such a naive girl. If not for me you would have fallen into complete darkness._"

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

When Yakumo's genjutsu took effect, Mito's eyes widened and went blank. Slowly she sank to her knees as tears started to fall from her face, stunning the crowd as they never imagined seeing the oldest daughter of the Hokage be reduced to such a state. Even Yakumo gave her best friend a guilty look, knowing that her jutsu was a harsh one.

But as Yakumo was about to cancel her genjutsu and knock Mito out, she felt a similar pulse of chakra that Narumi had as an orange spiral of charka started to seep out of Mito. Widening her eyes, Yakumo was sent flying back went a huge pulse of chakra surged out of Mito.

Before she even reached the ground, Mito grabbed Yakumo by the throat and what she saw made her feel an unknown sense of dread that she never felt in her best friend before, instead of her normal cerulean blue eyes they were as crimson as her hair with a vulpine pupil in place of a normal round one.

"That was a horrible genjutsu Yakumo-chan." Mito whispered, making Yakumo shiver as her eyes widened when her best friend gave her a bone chilling glare.

She was broken out of her thoughts as Mito flung her to the opposite wall, her head impacting with a audible thud as Yakumo lost consciousness.

Silence reigned over the arena as Mito suddenly dropped to her knees, panting as her eyes returned to their normal state. Slowly, she rose up once again though shaky. As she did, the crowd exploded in cheer for the brilliant comeback as Hayate smirked, raising his hand.

"The winner of the match: Mito Uzumaki-Namikaze!" He said as the crowd cheered even louder then before as Mito shyly smiled and waved at them, no used to the cheers of so many people.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

"Well, looks like another of Kakashi's genin made it through" Aoba said, getting nods from the others.

"Tch, please don't tell me it'll be a team Kakashi sweep!" Asuma groaned, getting a laugh from the other jōnin.

"I just hope that their friendship is still intact, the genjutsu looked really nasty if it was able to make Mito cry." Kakashi said, worry evident in his voice as the others shared his look.

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll understand that Yakumo-chan did what she had to do in order to try and win." Kurenai reassured him, getting him to give her an eye smile.

"Thanks Kurenai, I hope so too." He said as he returned his gaze to the arena.

Once again, in the 'Kage's Box' Kushina was cheering loudly over her daughters victory as Minato tried to calm her down, reminding her that the Kazekage was next to him. Though his concerns were for not as the Kazekage just chuckled and said it was refreshing to see such energy.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Judge's area)

With the judges they were more then surprised at the aptitude that the two girls presented.

"They certainly are both beautiful and skilled, definitely chūnin material!"

"Yes, definitely the daughters of Hokage-sama are chūnin material! I do hope his sons show such promise!"

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

As soon as Mito entered the infirmary, Narumi was on her, checking her for any injuries and nearly crying after seeing her cry.

"Mito-nee! Are you ok?! Why were you crying!? You looked so hurt! I was so worried!" Narumi cried, as Mito smiled at her little sister's concern.

"I'm fine Umi-chan, just tired. Yakumo-chan isn't the one to blame, we were having a match and she did what anyone else would have done, myself included." Mito said getting a nod from her sister.

"You alright?" Menma said, sneaking a glance at her as Mito smiled at her brother.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm going to check up on Yakumo-chan, so I'll catch you later. Good luck on your next match Menma!" She said as Menma nodded.

In the room next door, Mito reached Yakumo's bed and gently nudged her best friend who groaned before her eyes fluttered open.

"Hey Yakumo-chan." Mito said, her voice soft and a little hurt.

"...I'm sorry that I put you in that genjutsu Mito-chan. I know that it must have been something horrible you must have seen." She apologized, gently reaching out and holding Mito's hand.

"It's fine, it's just... What I saw... It'll probably never leave me." Mito said, clasping Yakumo's hand back.

"Hey, after this is all over, why don't we go shopping and hang out? We haven't been able to do that for quite some time." Yakumo said as Mito smiled, nodding her head.

"I'd like that Yakumo-chan!" Mito chirped happily as they smiled at each other.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Down on the arena floor, Hayate stood with Menma and Sasuke, both casting a glare to the other. Sensing the tension, Hayate nodded as he raised his arm.

"The next match: Menma Uzumaki-Namikaze vs. Sasuke Uchiha." He announced, as the crowd cheered, the fangirls of both cheering and screaming loudly among them Ino and Sakura were head to head as they began to compete against each other as Choji started to sweat.

"Hope you're ready to lose Uchiha." Menma sneered as Sasuke just smirked.

"You'll be eating your words soon enough Namikaze." Sasuke sneered back, as the lightning started to spark between their eyes.

"It's too bad my older brother isn't here for me to beat down along with you. Oh well, you'll be enough I guess." Menma said as Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"Aren't you a little too hard on your older brother, sure he may be weak but he's still your brother. Show him some respect." Sasuke said, his voice unusually somber.

"Tch, what the hell are you talking about Uchiha? You, of all people, are lecturing me about family? Don't you hate your siblings, you sure act like it especially when you got jealous of Satsuki for unlocking her Sharingan." Menma shot back, as Sasuke's eyes darkened.

"When have I ever said that I hate them? Sure I glare at them and get angry at them, but I love them with all my heart. And of course I get jealous of them, it's only natural for siblings to feel some kind of jealousy from each other, but that doesn't mean I hate them it only means that I need to work harder to surpass them." Sasuke nearly snarled, angry at the blonde for accusing him of hating his siblings; the same siblings who he grew up with, lived with, loved, and would give his life for.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Up in the stands, hearing the two exchange heated words caused their respective fan clubs to do the same, along with throwing glares and insults at their rivals.

"Hey Forehead, sure Sasuke is going to beat Menma-kun? Ha! I doubt it!" Ino sneered as Sakura's eye twitched in anger.

"Don't get me started with you Pig! Sasuke-kun will crush Menma this time, it won't be like the academy where they always tied!" Sakura shouted as sparked flew between the two, causing Choji to shrink back in fear.

With the jonin, to say they were excited was an understatement. They were waiting for this match the most, even more then Mito and Narumi's matches. It wasn't that the matches before were any less exciting or important but this one had two rivals who were practically equal in terms of speed, strength, skill, and intelligence.

"Kakashi, the match hasn't even started and it's already intense!" Asuma said, his eyes twinkling in anticipation.

"I agree, those two certainly are at the top of their year." Kurenai said, her eyes never leaving the two.

"Yosh! Such youth! Their rivalry burns with the same intensity that ours has Kakashi!" Gai shouted, as everyone sweat dropped though they couldn't refute the claim, at least the part with Sasuke and Menma.

"I just hope things don't go too far." Was all Kakashi said, knowing that his honorary little brother could get too caught up in fighting.

With Kushina and Minato, they remained silent. They knew that Menma was a strong shinobi and that Sasuke was indeed his rival, ever since they could walk and talk. But they were also concerned as Menma always got too into the spars he had with his peers and sisters. They only hoped that he didn't do anything that could really hurt the son of their closest friends.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Seeing that the tension was nearing a high, Hayate acted quickly.

"Alright, ready. Begin!" He said, bringing his hand down as the two immediately jumped back, flashing through a series of seals.

Finishing, Sasuke brought his hand to his mouth as Menma did the same.

"**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu**!" Sasuke roared, as he fired a large fireball at Menma.

"**Katon: Endan**!" Menma shouted as he fired a medium sized bullet of fire at Sasuke.

As the two masses of fire collided, a brilliant explosion of flames danced around the field. As Menma and Sasuke raced towards each other.

Lashing out with his right, Menma aimed a punch towards Sasuke's face who tilted to avoid the attack. Grabbing his wrist, Sasuke spun and smashed his elbow into Menma's face. Though it didn't work as intended as Menma caught the blow, his arms buckling a little.

"T-That was a move Satsuki used!" Menma shouted, his eyes narrowed as Sasuke smirked.

"Who do you think helped me train over the past month." Sasuke said as his leg shot forward and caught Menma in the stomach as Menma grunted, staggering back a little.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

The family of the raven haired boy all smiled when they heard him say that. Over the course of the month, he had trained with all of them having asked them to help him grow stronger, though he never managed to unlock his Sharingan. Satsuki especially felt pride in her brother as she was the only who spent nearly 3 weeks helping him train and even taught him some of her own moves.

"_Sasuke-chan, you can do it!_" Mikoto said in her mind, her eyes sparkling and her hands clenched in anticipation.

"_I believe in you Sasuke, you can win this._" Itachi silently cheered in his mind, as a smile made its way to his face.

"_I know that as my son, you have the highest chance of beating Minato's son out of everyone in this tournament._" Fugaku said in his mind, a small smile appearing on his face.

"_Come'on Sasuke! Don't forget what I told you! Always try and think three steps ahead of your opponent! Menma shouldn't even be that hard to figure out!_" Satsuki mentally coached, hoping that their twin telepathy still worked.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Quickly spinning on the ball of his foot, Sasuke jumped and aimed a kick at Menma's head, the blonde quickly bringing his arm up to block the blow, his body swaying from the force of the blow. His eyes narrowing even more, Menma took a step forward and slammed his shoulder into Sasuke, sending him flying a few feet back.

But Sasuke straightened himself out while in mid-air, landing on his feet as he flashing through a series of seals, Menma following suit.

"**Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu**!" He shouted as he fired off a volley of flames at Menma who responded with his own jutsu.

"**Futon: Daitoppa**!" Menma shouted, as a surge of wind raced towards the flames, extinguishing them but Menma widened his eyes as he saw what was inside of them.

Unable to act in time, a few shuriken hidden in the flame, slashed him as he winced. While none managed to embed themselves in him, they did cut him on the cheek, shoulder, and thigh. While he was distracted, Sasuke appeared before Menma as his eyes widened.

His leg shooting upwards, it connected with Menma's jaw reminiscent of what Lee did earlier in the exams to Sasuke himself. While in the air, Sasuke appeared behind Menma as he put his hand on the blonde's back and forced him to spin slightly, lashing out with his leg which connected to Menma's side.

Spinning around, Sasuke swung and smashed his forearm against Menma's neck causing the blonde to let out a strangled cry of pain. As the two fell towards the ground, Sasuke lashed out with a fist and struck Menma in the center of the chest as the air was forced out of his lungs. But Sasuke wasn't finished as he spun once more and slammed his heel into Menma's abdomen, the blonde's eyes going wide as spittle flew out of his mouth.

"**Shishi Rendan**!" Sasuke said, as he rolled away from Menma.

Sighing, Sasuke was about to relax but he felt a sudden surge of chakra emit from Menma, when he looked he widened his eyes, it was just like what happened with Narumi and Mito. An orange spiral of chakra surround Menma, as he a smirk came to his face when he saw the look of shock on Sasuke's face.

Bringing his hands into a familiar cross shaped seal, Menma created a number of clones and sent them to take out the raven haired boy.

Hitting the ground, Sasuke cursed as he rolled back into a stance and endured the onslaught of clones. Focusing on defense rather then offense, a concept that was still foreign to him.

Waiting until a clone threw a hit, Sasuke with counter with one of his own, though there were multiple times where the sheer number of clones overtook him, as Menma replaced each clone destroyed with 2 more.

Jumping, Sasuke twisted his body with his legs out as they caught the jaws of multiple clones, sending them staggering back before they were destroyed. But before he could land, Menma and his clones closed in on him.

The clone that reached him first buried its fist into Sasuke's stomach, his eyes widening as the air was forced out of his lungs. Before he could catch his breath, another clone planted its hand on the ground and connected its foot with his jaw, he felt the bones in his jaw creak from the blow as he was sent into the air. But Menma wasn't finished with his assault once Sasuke was off the ground.

Grabbing hold of one another, two clones hurled their partners into the air, after Sasuke as they landed two more brutal punches to his jaw, as he flew up even higher before he started to free fall. Once he was close to the level Menma's head sat, Two more clones rushed him, spinning before they connected their heels with his stomach before he was sent flying back. Though he didn't get far as the original Menma was waiting for him, a terrifying spiraling sphere in his hand and a smirk on his face, his cerulean eyes having a vulpine slitted pupil as opposed to the regular round one.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Everyone widened their eyes when they witnessed the brutal attacks that Menma subjected Sasuke to, but they widened even more in fear once they saw what Menma had in his hand. There was no mistaking the jutsu that he held, and soon fear filled their hearts as the thought of him killing Sasuke turned all too real.

"T-Thats!" Aoba shouted as he stood up, a few of the other jonin mimicking his action.

"Kakashi! Please tell me you didn't teach him something that dangerous!" Asuma shouted, his eyes wide in fear and disbelief.

"No! After all he's been through, there's no telling if Sasuke will survive that!" Genma shouted, as he was about to jump down to the arena to save his student, only to be restrained by Kakashi.

"Don't interfere. If... If things go wrong, I'll take responsibility for his actions." Kakashi said, his head bowed as Genma could only gape at the man.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Judge's area)

With the judges, once they saw that technique there was no mistaking that they had to make Menma a chūnin. They would be insulting the boy if they didn't promote him, seeing as he had such talent.

"A boy his age using such a jutsu! We would be foolish not to promote him!"

"I agree! I vote to promote all three of Hokage-sama's children!"

In the 'Kage's Box' Minato had his eyes wide in disbelief.

"_He couldn't have, the only way was... Jiraiya-sensei..._" Minato thought bitterly with dread filling his heart, seeing as his son was going to potentially kill the son of a close friend.

"_No! Menma-chan, don't use that against Sasuke! You could kill him!_" Kushina screamed in her mind, unable to voice her thoughts as her throat tightened up seeing her son using such a dangerous jutsu.

While Minato and Kushina were worried, the Kazekage just smirked under his veil, seeing the son of the Hokage about to kill a comrade.

Minato wasn't the only father who was worried, Fugaku was outright terrified though the only inclination he was showing was in his eyes. Mikoto had tears falling from her eyes as she covered her mouth, not believing that she was about to see her son get shredded by the jutsu that their close friend had created. Itachi had his eyes filled with fear as he clenched his fists, gritting his teeth at his inability to help his younger brother.

But out of all of them, Satsuki felt the most dread. She was the one who had worked with Sasuke the most during the training month, it would be her fault that her brother got seriously injured or even died. Just the thought of that brought tears to her eyes as she watched her brother approach Menma in almost slow motion.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

"**RASENGAN**!" Menma shouted, slamming the glowing sphere into Sasuke 's back as a silent scream erupted out of Sasuke's throat, feeling pain unlike anything he had experienced before.

As the sphere grinded into Sasuke's back, Hayate quickly moved into to stop the attack. Grabbing Menma's wrist, he flicked his hand as Menma was sent flying to the opposite side of the arena as Hayate caught Sasuke, whose eyes were wide in pain, strangled noises escaping his mouth.

Quickly tapping a spot on Sasuke's neck, Hayate put him to sleep to ease the pain that he was feeling as concern was replaced with anger. He couldn't believe that Menma would use such a jutsu against a comrade, let alone on someone who he grew up with. Raising his hand up, he signaled for the medics as they immediately arrived and took Sasuke to the infirmary.

"Winner: Menma Uzumaki-Namikaze." Hayate said, as the crowd remained silent.

They were still in shock at seeing Menma use the **Rasengan** against someone who they thought was his comrade. Sure it was a tournament, but wasn't it a little extreme. Though the eerie silence soon dissolved into cheer as his fanclub started to scream and shout his name, the crowd following suit, though with less enthusiasm.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

With the jonin sensei, they were silent, still not believing that one, Menma could use the **Rasengan** and two, that he actually used it on Sasuke.

"Whoa. That was kind of brutal." Asuma said, getting a few others to nod along with him.

"Yeah, I didn't think he would actually follow through with it." Kurenai said, anger evident in her voice.

"Tch." Genma angrily said, ripping his arm free from Kakashi's grasp as he went to check on his student.

As he exited the building, Anko had arrived, curious as to why the mood was so heavy. But when they told her, she also gained a slightly angry look.

"...I'll talk with Menma." Kakashi said as he left the area.

In the 'Kage's Box' Minato and Kushina were in disbelief, unable to believe that their son had actually used the **Rasengan** on Sasuke. They were going to have a long talk with both Jiraiya and Menma after this was all over. With the Kazekage, he just smirked seeing the brutal attack.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

In the infirmary, the other genin gave Menma a mixed set of stares. Some blank, others angry, and a few scared. He noticed that his sisters were giving him angry looks, not that he cared. He won and that's all that mattered in his book.

"Menma, you went too far. You know that the **Rasengan** is a dangerous jutsu that could kill and yet you still used it." Mito lectured him, while he just rolled his eyes.

"Mito-nee is right Menma-nii, you didn't have to use it, you could have just as easily let Sasuke hit the wall." Narumi added, only making Menma sigh.

"Look, I won right? That's all that really matters and it's not like I killed him! Hayate-sensei stopped it before it got too far, so everything's fine!" He said, as he walked into a room, leaving a stunned set of genin behind.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Finally, the last match of the first round was here. Excitement filled the stadium as everyone eagerly awaited the finale of the first round. But for a few people, the excitement they were supposed to feel was replaced with worry and anxiety.

"_Naruto, where the hell are you brat. Your match got pushed back to the end and you're still not here_." Zabuza angrily thought, though he was extremely worried for his favorite blonde.

"_Naruto-kun, where are you? Please, don't miss your match!_" Haku prayed as she clasped her hands together.

"_Where are you Naruto? You're really beginning to worry me._" Satsuki thought as a worried expression made its way onto her face, getting surprised, suspicious and knowing looks from her family. Surprise from Fugaku, suspicion from Itachi and knowing from Mikoto.

"_Where are you gaki? It's really not like you to be this late. If you don't show up and I lose my bet with the guys I'll make the next training session I have with you hell._" Anko thought as sweat started to drip down her head as she grinded her teeth together, the other jōnin giving her a wide berth.

"_Naruto-kun..._" Was all that Kin was thinking, she had managed to avoid her team and come to the stadium, she needed to warn him of the invasion plan before it was too late.

Up in the 'Kage's Box' Minato and Kushina were now extremely worried about their son. Minato had done his best to push his match to the end to buy some time but now time has run out.

"_Naruto, where are you? Please I hope you're alright, you have to be. I never felt the pull of the kunai I gave you._" Minato thought with worry, his hand clenched tightly into a fist, his knuckles white.

"_Naru-chan... Please, don't make me and your father wait any longer._" Kushina thought with worry, the endless scenarios concerning her son playing in her head only added to her worries.

"_Where are you Naruto-kun? I expect to see how far you've come._" The Kazekage thought, though he was also a little concerned about the whereabouts of his vessel.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

In the infirmary, the atmosphere was the same in the stands. Everyone was anxiously waiting for the blonde to show up for his match.

"_Naru-nii... Where are you...?_" Narumi thought with worry plaguing her heart, her eyes scanning the arena for any sign of her brother.

"_Naruto-nii, please be safe..._" Mito thought, her hands clasped together as worry filled her heart.

"_Tch. Where are you loser? Don't tell me you died while training? Though that wouldn't be much of a surprise._" Menma thought, his eyes narrowed at the thought.

"_Naruto..._" Yakumo worriedly thought, scanning the arena for her teammate.

While the Konoha ninja were worried, the Suna ninja were also worried but for a completely different reason.

"Temari... What if he doesn't show?" Kankuro whispered to his older sister, fear evident in his voice.

"He will Kankuro, he has to. If he doesn't..." She whispered before she trailed off, her fear filled eyes sneaking glances at her baby brother.

They froze when they heard their younger brother speak, his voice sounding oddly expectant and confident.

"He will show up." Was all Gaara said as his older sibling gulped, seeing him start to shake slightly.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

Glancing around, Hayate was worried as well. He wanted to see what Naruto had learned over the course of the month after he had saved him. But he knew that the rules needed to be adhered to, even if he, himself, wanted to ask for more time.

Sighing to himself, Hayate raised his hand as the entire audience of the stadium held their breaths. Taking one more glance around the stadium, Hayate gained a small frown on his face as he readied his hand to be brought down.

But before he could do it, a swirl of leaves made him and everyone else in the stadium freeze. Slowly, it dispersed to reveal a blonde a few were familiar with. From kneeling down, he slowly stood as a few people gasped at his appearance others blushing slightly.

Bandages covered nearly the entirety of his chest, a few being colored a light red as he was garbed in a pair of shorts that looked like they had been ripped up by some savage beast. He had bandages covering the length of his arms, ending at his elbows that were covered in blots of blood. On his feet were a standard pair of black shinobi sandals. His forehead protector attached firmly to his right bicep. But what struck everyone the most was the cut that he had on his cheek, still bleeding slightly.

But that didn't detract from his navy blue eyes, as they stared intently at Hayate who broke out of his stupor and flashed a grin to the blonde.

"I'm sorry I'm late Hayate-sensei, I tripped on the way here." Naruto said.

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>And there's chapter 14. Still not too good with the fight scenes and they are rushed, please forgive me, I'm still trying to learn how to write them better. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. Leave me a review or PM me with what you think alright? I always love to hear from you guys and PM'ing me is the best way for you to reach me with suggestions or questions. Again, till next time, stay awesome.<strong>

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><p><strong>Henge - Transformation<strong>: E-rank, Ninjutsu; This gives this technique has an abundance of uses. The transformation of a skilled shinobi will be exactly like the genuine article, so it will be impossible to tell the two apart. It is typically used to change into people other than oneself, but one also has the ability to change into animals, plants, and even inanimate objects like weapons.

**Shunshin - Body Flicker**: D-Rank Ninjutsu; A high-speed movement technique, allowing a ninja to move short to long distances at an almost untraceable speed. To an observer, it appears as if the user has teleported. A puff of smoke is occasionally used to disguise the user's movements. It is accomplished by using chakra to temporarily vitalize the body and move at extreme speeds. The amount of chakra required depends on the overall distance and elevation between the user and the intended destination.

**Juken - Gentle Fist**: A form of hand-to-hand combat used by members of the Hyuga clan. It inflicts internal damage through attacking the body's Chakra Pathway System, subsequently injuring organs which are closely intertwined with the area of the network which has been struck. To do this, the user surgically injects a certain amount of their own chakra into the opponent's tenketsu, causing damage to surrounding organs due to their proximity to the chakra circulatory system. Even the slightest tap can cause severe internal damage, hence the name "gentle" fist.

**Hakke Rokujūyon Shō** - **Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms**: B-Rank Taijutsu; With the Byakugan's near 360° field of vision, the user envisions an Eight Trigrams circle. Then the enemy within this circle is hit with a series of violent blows. By striking sixty-four of the tenketsu throughout the opponent's Chakra Pathway System, their chakra flow is stopped, making them unable to even stand.

**Kage Bunshin - Shadow Clone**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; Similar to the basic **Bunshin**, this technique creates copies of the user. However, these clones are corporeal instead of illusions. The user's chakra is evenly distributed among every clone, giving each clone an equal fraction of the user's overall power. The clones are capable of performing techniques on their own and can even bleed, but will usually disperse after hit by a strong enough force. The clones can also disperse on their own or be dispelled by the user of the technique. **Kage Bunshin** can't be distinguished from the original with Sharingan, Byakugan or Rinnegan.

**Hakkeshō Kaiten - Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven**: B-Rank Ninjutsu; A secret taijutsu that is orally handed down only within the main house of the Hyuga, this technique utilizes the chakra control gained through Gentle Fist training to release a huge amount of chakra from all the chakra points on the user's body. It is also a defensive maneuver to compensate for the Byakugan's blind spot as the released chakra blocks any possible attack on the user. After releasing chakra from every tenketsu in their body, the user then spins rapidly to parry the attack, both creating a rotating shield of chakra around themselves and tossing away any nearby attackers. The user can also actively control the size and power of the sphere to suit the situation. This technique is only effective when rotating, since the chakra itself is not enough to stop a physical attack thus if they cannot spin, the user becomes vulnerable.

**Hienrenkyaku** - **Flying Swallow Chain Kick**: C-Rank, Taijutsu; This jutsu is an anti-air taijutsu that can be used to hit airborne enemies or to push grounded enemies into the air. It is a rising triple-kick combo, in which Narumi jumps diagonally towards her target while spinning higher into the air with each kick. The initial combo can be followed up immediately with a variety of jutsu or attacks, due to the position that the target is in when the combo is finished. Narumi can also enhance the power of the kicks by applying Tsunade's chakra enhanced strength, which was taught to her, to completely destroy her target's bones and organs.

**Ninpo: Kamaitachi no Jutsu** - **Ninja Art: Sickle Weasel Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; By manipulating the gale brought forth by her fan, the many air currents collide and create vacuum pockets. The person enveloped by this gale is assaulted by countless invisible blades, carving up their body. Also, the strong wind power will blow away all incoming projectile weapons and will even make the opponent unable to stay on their feet. Temari has also shown the ability to manipulate the form of the gale, creating a tornado to envelop and lift her opponent, while also cutting them several times.

**Kagemane no Jutsu - Shadow Imitation Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user extends their shadow on any surface (even water) and as far as they want as long as there is a sufficient area. Once it comes into contact with a target's shadow, the two merge and the target is forced to imitate the user's movements. Therefore, the two can throw shuriken at each other at the same time if the user desires that (of course, to prevent hurting themselves, the user just has to have the shuriken holster in a place where you don't normally have it, like the back, so that the opponent draws nothing when the user draws a shuriken). If the target is out of range, the user can produce a better light source to increase their shadow's size or rely on pre-existing shadows for their shadow to freely travel through. It's also possible to split one's shadow, either to trap more opponents at once, or to create a distraction.

**Suiton: Mizurappa - Water Release: Wild Water Wave**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user molds chakra in their mouths into water and fires a stream of condensed water at their target. The range, speed, and power is dependent on how much chakra is used. Can be strengthened by various different means such as introducing another element.

**Meimu Jun - Illusion Turn**: C-Rank, Genjutsu, Ninjutsu; A genjutsu that Yakumo created with the help of Satsuki. By utilizing the same principals as her other jutsu, **Kyuudou Kiboku**, Yakumo creates a dome of chakra that traps her opponent in a genjutsu that shifts the perception of her opponent. It is a minor illusion, but it is enough to allow Yakumo to take advantage of the situation and escape or launch another attack. It can be easily broken by conventional means but also by the target leaving the dome.

**Toko Sangeki - Endless Tragedy**: B-Rank, Genjutsu, Ninjutsu; A genjutsu that Yakumo created with the help of Anko and Kurenai. Yakumo is able to cast this genjutsu through sight or touch, when casted it taps into her targets psyche and physically brings about the most tragic event that the target has experienced, dreamt or imagined, repeating the moment endlessly until the jutsu is cancelled. It can be easily broken as it takes a lot of Yakumo's concentration to keep the jutsu in effect, just the slightest distraction will cause Yakumo to break her concentration and by extension, the illusion.

**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu - Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; A technique where chakra kneaded inside the body is converted into fire and expelled from the mouth either as a massive orb of roaring flame or as a continuous flame-thrower. The scope of the attack is altered by controlling the volume of chakra that is mustered. The released flames will engulf their target, and leave a crater on the ground's surface. The Uchiha clan also uses this technique as a "coming of age" rite and is a common and one of the more favored techniques of the clan.

**Katon: Endan - Fire Release: Flame Bullet**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user kneads chakra into their mouth then fires a simple flame bullet at their target. The size and range is dependent on the amount of chakra used. It can be combined with futon jutsu to increase its power.

**Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu - Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; This technique creates a volley of small fireballs, which are sent flying in an unpredictable manner assaulting the enemy. In addition, the flames are controlled one by one with chakra, so avoiding them all is extremely difficult. Shuriken can also be concealed within the flames, creating an unexpected secondary surprise attack. Like the flames, the shuriken can be controlled with chakra. For the most part, however, this technique is used as a distraction.

**Futon: Daitoppa - Wind Release: Great Breakthrough**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; This is a relatively simple technique that creates a sudden gust of wind, but its scale varies greatly depending on the user. If used by a superior shinobi, it has enough destructive power to knock down a large tree. The wind from the squall can blow away all things in the user's line of sight.

**Shishi Rendan - Lion's Barrage**: C-Rank, Taijutsu; A taijutsu unique to Sasuke and a variant of the **Omote Renge**. Sasuke developed it after asking Satsuki to help him, who had managed to copy the first part of the move. It is an ultra-fast combo attack that requires an advanced physical condition and a certain knack for it. The opponent is first kicked into the air and shadowed with the **Kage Buyō**. Upon inflicting a blow, one takes advantage of said opponent's counterattack to spin around and rise again for further assaults. Since the fall is increased in velocity with each blow, the damage when one is eventually struck to the ground is inconceivable. All variations end with the opponent being thrown to the ground and kicked in the stomach. However, like with the** Omote Renge**, there is a drawback in which the user gets fatigued right after the technique is performed, though this drawback isn't as severe.

**Rasengan - Spiraling Sphere**: A-Rank, Ninjutsu; The Rasengan is an A-rank jutsu created by the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, by observing the Tailed Beast Ball. Minato spent three years developing the Rasengan; his intention was to take the shape transformation of one's chakra to the "highest possible point" and combine it with his chakra's nature affinity, creating a technique that did not need the aid of time-consuming hand seals to control. On shape transformation alone, the Rasengan is still a powerful, versatile, and difficult technique to learn and master.


	16. Chapter 15

"Naruto" - Person Talking

_'Naruto'_ - Person Thinking

**"Naruto"** - Summons/Bijū talking

_**"Naruto"**_ - Summons/Bijū thinking

**"****Kage Bunshin no Jutsu****"** - Jutsu

**Hey guys, I'm finally back. I'm sorry for the nearly month of doing nothing, including answering messages. I've been through a sort of rough time, if you've been to the reviews you can kind of get an idea of what people have sent me. I got about 13 messages just filled with hate and flames, and about 17 anonymous reviews doing the same. I know that this isn't the best story but I'm actually kind of proud of how it's turned out for my first story, as idiotic as it sounds. For you guys who've stuck by me and sent me such encouraging messages, I've really got to thank you. You always make me so happy that you enjoy my story and support my writing, no matter how bad it is. Well, that was half of the problem, the other half was getting back into the groove of college. Yeah, those of you who aren't in college yet, enjoy the freedom you have and if possible, stay away from Engineering. Calculus sucks. Haha, well yeah that's enough of me moping around right? It's only 10k but I hope you guys like it. Again, the fights aren't good; they're barely passable. Well, let's a go right?**

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><p>A Son Forgotten - Chapter 15<p>

"I'm sorry I'm late Hayate-sensei, I tripped on the way here."

Once those words left Naruto's mouth, the crowd when silent. Some had their jaws hanging wide open, others had their eyes twitching, and a few just sighed in relief. Hayate was the first to snap out of his stupor as he cleared his throat before speaking.

"You know you don't have to lie Naruto, I can see that you were most likely late from coming back from where every you were training at." Hayate said, getting a blank stare from Naruto.

"No, I really am late because I tripped Hayate-sensei." Naruto said once again.

(Flashback - A few minutes ago)

The sun beginning to arc towards the horizon, Naruto cursed under his breath at his luck. He knew he should've left earlier, but that battle with Tatsuko just took so much out of him. Sighing, he checked his pocket watch once more as his eye started twitching. He was going to miss the final part of the tournament at this rate. He could only pray that Minato had saved the 3-way match for the end.

Pocketing the watch once more, he turned his attention forward only to sigh as he still had quite the journey ahead of him. He was going to be late, there was no sugarcoating it, and he would probably be chewed out by his team for it, seeing as he was the 'Great Keeper of Time' when it came to being on time.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice that the path had been caved in slightly, a sizeable difference in height in the craggy path; most likely created when Jho had brought him to Thousand Blade mountain earlier in the month, which is why he didn't register it.

As he neared it, he, with the grace and poise of a someone befitting the title 'Shinobi', tripped and fell face first into the ground. Once his face kissed the ground with an audible 'thunk', he groaned. He laid there for a few minutes, basking in embarrassment and mortification before he slowly pushed himself back up and returned to running, cursing himself for such an embarrassing display.

All the while never noticing that he had damaged his body during the fall; slightly reopening a few wounds he had on his chest, cutting his cheek on a particularly jagged piece of rock along with his arms.

Putting the embarrassing event behind him, he sped up knowing he had really wasted a lot of time just laying in the dirt. Finally he managed to reach his scroll before he slammed his hand on it, reverse summoning him to the location of the other scroll which was located in his special training ground. Once he reached the other side, he quickly **Shunshin**'d to the Examination Stadium, ignoring the fact he was basically half-naked.

(Flashback - End)

Hayate still gave him an bewildered look, not believing that the blonde really was late all because he tripped. But after a few seconds, Hayate just laughed and gave Naruto a smile, happy that he didn't miss and forfeit his match.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

Like before, everyone was still in shock at Naruto sudden and flashy appearance and his lousy excuse.

"...I'm going to murder him." Zabuza said, his eye twitching at the blonde's idiotic entrance. Was he trying to show off? Zabuza had to admit, he looked pretty cool coming in like that, but wasn't he supposed to be a shinobi? Or was he really just not as coordinated and prompt as he remembered.

"Naruto-kun, I'm glad you're finally here." Haku whispered, releasing a sigh of relief. Though she was worried, very worried, when she saw the state that his body was in. Ignoring that he was blatantly displaying his body for all to see, which really irked her, he was still bleeding and his cuts could get infected.

As the father and daughter duo were both relieved and irked at the sight of the blonde, their thoughts were shared with a myriad of others; all with varying thoughts and questions.

"That moron! He nearly gave me a heart attack! Once this is all over, he's going to get it, seeing as he always tells us that ninja are always prompt! Don't worry me like that you idiot..." Satsuki said while whispering the last part just loud enough for her family to hear.

"_Hmm... Satsuki's actually worried? And about a boy? Since when did she start to take an interest in boys? _" Fugaku thought as he raised an eyebrow at his daughter's words, something primal and innate in every father starting to bubble up within him.

"_Ufufufu!_" Mikoto giggled, a bit of pink on her cheeks and a knowing look seeing her daughter so worried for her blonde teammate.

"_Must protect Satsuki. Protect Satsuki's purity._" Itachi repeated in his mind, unconsciously activating his Sharingan seeing his sister so worried for a boy.

Kiba, who had arrived right after Menma's match ended clicked his tongue as he missed his best friend's match. But when he saw the entrance of his older brother, he glared at the older blonde.

"Tch, showoff." Kiba muttered, taking an empty seat near the aisle.

"Oh, look forehead! It's Menma-kun's... brother..." Ino started before she froze, a bit of pink coloring her cheeks seeing the older blonde's appearance.

"Y-Yeah..." Sakura stuttered, pink also coloring her cheeks as she looked at the same blonde.

Both began to flush deeper the more they stared at Naruto, their inner selves having an internal battle seeing the body of the older blonde.

"_N-No! Menma-kun is the one for me! But... NO! Must stay strong!_" Ino thought as she tried to avert her eyes from the blonde by covering them with her eyes, only to peek through her fingers

"_S-Sasuke-kun is my one true love! I-I can't be swayed by some hunky blonde! Wait I mean a flunky blonde!_" Sakura said in her mind, snapping her eyes shut only to peek out of them a second later.

Nearby, a young pale-eyed girl stared at the blonde with a bashful expression, her cheeks tinged a rosy pink.

"_W-Wow. H-He's clearly different from Menma-san and the other boys._" Hanabi thought as she timidly stared at the blonde, her blush never fading as she stared at the older boy.

Beside her Hiashi showed an intrigued and slightly amused expression as he noticed his youngest daughter's actions.

"_Oh, it seems like Hanabi has been charmed by Minato's oldest. How amusing, though this may be another way to tie our clans together and strengthen our friendship._" Hiashi thought as a small smirk formed on his face.

With the jōnin, Anko breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing her favorite blonde headed genin. Though she was a little worried and curious as to why he looked the way he did.

"_Geez, don't scare me like that Naruto! For a second there I really did think something bad happened to you._" Anko said in her mind, closing her eyes and smiling at her student.

"_So he did make it, interesting._" Kurenai said in her head, a small smirk on her face. She was curious as to how the enigmatic blonde would fare against Gaara.

"_Let's just hope that it isn't a repeat of what happened in the preliminaries._" Asuma thought, knowing what the redhead was capable of, though, like everyone else, he was still in the dark when it came to the skills of the blonde.

"_So the mysterious older brother finally appears. I'll give it to him though, that was something I would've done. Let's see if he really does have what it takes to be sensei's son and their real older brother._" Kakashi thought, an intrigued look in his eyes.

"_Show them what you showed me before Naruto-kun. I know you have what it takes to win._" Gai thought with a smile on his face, knowing that the blonde was indeed much stronger then he looked and acted.

In the 'Kage's Box' Minato and Kushina had their eyes wide when they saw their son's entrance. Not only was it grand and showy, something that they didn't think he was capable of; he was also covered in injuries that only looked that they had recently healed. Minato broke out of his stupor first and flashed his son a huge grin as he finally arrived for his match. Kushina reacted after, a worried look on her face as she desperately wanted to jump down and fret over his injuries.

"_You're here Naruto! You nearly gave me a heart attack! Show me and everyone what we've wanted to see! Show everyone that you aren't the dead last that they label you, show them that you truly are the oldest out of your siblings!_" Minato shouted in his mind, his body shaking with excitement as he was about to witness his son's strength firsthand and without distraction.

"_Naru-chan, why are you battling when you're hurt! You should have waited for your injuries to heal before battling!_" Kushina thought with worry, hoping that Hayate would call the match for him to get treated before they started.

Beside them, under his calm façade, the Kazekage nearly had his eyes wide open when he laid eyes on the blonde. It wasn't his appearance, though he would admit that it was rather daring for a public match, it was his seal. His seal didn't exist anymore or at least it was altered greatly, though he could still feel it. A smirk appearing under his veil, he looked forward to what his vessel was going to show him.

"_Haha! How interesting! Please show me what my future vessel is capable of!_" He thought, stifling the laughter that threatened to escape from his mouth.

As the three stared at him, three more joined them on different parts of the stadium rooftop. It was Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru; all who had finally arrived in time to catch the final match. When they were entering the stadium, they overhead the results of the earlier matches and they were pleased to hear that the one ones they placed their bets on had advanced.

What they weren't prepared for was Naruto's flashy entrance. When they laid eyes on him, they knew that he wasn't the same blonde that they had seen last month, there was something off about them that their senses were picking up, though they didn't know what. Pushing those thoughts to the back of their heads, they settled down after waving to Minato and Kushina, who waved back to, to enjoy the show.

"_We finally get to see what he's been working on for the past month, though I'm not expecting too much seeing as he turned down Minato's offer to train him._" Jiraiya thought, his eyes never leaving the oldest and most enigmatic of his godchildren.

"_So Naruto's match is the final one huh, while I didn't get to see Umi-chan's, this should still be interesting!_" Tsunade thought as she poured herself a saucer of sake before downing it and returning her attention to the field.

"_Well Naruto-kun, show us what you have been hiding. Show us the strength of the heir of the Uzumaki-Namikaze clan._" Orochimaru thought, his eyes locked onto the blonde as they shined in anticipation, a small smile appearing on his face.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

Seeing the blonde finally make his appearance, there were many mixed reactions. Naturally, there were a few who had rather strong reactions.

"NARU-NII! HE'S HERE! HE'S FINALLY HERE!" Narumi squealed happily, tears nearly falling from her eyes after seeing her brother after a month of knowing nothing about what happened to him. But soon, her excitement and happiness turned to worry when she caught sight of her older brother's appearance, frowning seeing him more bandaged up then she ever had.

"Naruto-nii… You're alright…" Mito whispered, brushing away a stray tear, happy and worried as she gazed lovingly at her older brother. After this match she was going to sit him down and demand to know where he's been for the past month.

"So he actually showed up." Menma said with a small frown, obviously not happy about seeing his brother. Though it turned to a smirk when he remembered who he was going to face.

"Naruto you idiot, you made Satsuki and I so worried…" Yakumo whispered, brushing away a few tears that made their way out of her eyes.

"Man, what a guy. Showing up late AND flashy? That's something I figure Menma would do but not him." Shikamaru said, a small smile on his face as he stared at the blonde.

"S-So the kid did show… That's good news for us…" Kankuro said, casting a glace to his younger brother.

"W-Whoa…" Temari said, a little bit of pink coloring her cheeks as she gazed at the blonde below her.

"He's finally arrived." Gaara said, a mad look in his eyes as an equally insane smile appeared on his face.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Arena)

Back on the arena, Hayate quickly asked Naruto if he was in fighting condition seeing as there was fresh blood on him, but Naruto reassured him that he was fine to fight which got Hayate to smile. Nodding at him, he straightened his posture as he made his way back to the center of the ring.

"Alright, Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze has arrived and is in fighting condition. Will Gaara please make his way to the field." Hayate said as a swirl of sand appeared opposite of Naruto.

Soon, Gaara appeared, his insane smile never leaving his face as they made their way towards each other. Seeing as Gaara was practically shaking holding himself back, Hayate raised his hand and started the match.

"The final match of the first round: Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze vs. Gaara of the Sand. Begin!"

"Finally! Show me what it truly means to be alive!" Gaara shouted as his sand shot out towards Naruto with surprising speed.

Seeing the sand approach, Naruto tilted his head slightly as he causally jumped back, his blank expression never changing. As he landed, the sand changed its course and chased after Naruto once more. This time, Naruto narrowed his eyes as the sand seemed to be actively chasing him like a predator chasing prey. Drawing his hand back, wind started to spin wildly around his fist as he put most of his weight on his back foot.

"**Futon: Senpūken**!" Naruto shouted, throwing his fist out as a whirlwind surged out of it, colliding and scattering the sand as he closed in on Gaara.

"Don't worry Mother. I've given you bad blood earlier, but this time it will make you happy." He said, as more sand rushed out of his gourd and moved to intercept Naruto.

Side stepping, Naruto had to roll further to the side as the sand started to pick up speed as Gaara raised his hands to control it. Getting back to his feet, he spun on the ball of his foot as he lashed out with the other, his heel scattering the sand. Jumping slightly, he lashed out with the other as he completely scattered the remaining tendril of sand. As he landed, he flipped back as another tendril of sand shot out towards him.

"_This is getting annoying. Unlike with Lee, he's really speeding up his sand from the beginning._" Naruto thought as he scattered the tendril with a quick punch while in the air.

Once his feet touched the ground, he vanished as the eyes of everyone watching widened. Before Gaara or his sand could react, he was sent barreling towards the wall as Naruto's fist connected with his jaw. Once he hit the wall, a minor explosion rang out, dust and debris clouding the area.

As the dust cleared and settled, Gaara stood tall as the insane look and smile on his face seemed to have increased in contrast to faltering in the face of being hit. The part of his jaw where Naruto's fist had connected to fell off, revealing that he was utilizing the sand armor that he had shown earlier in the preliminaries.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Stands)

"Alright! He sent that Suna kid flying!"

"As expected from the oldest son of our Hokage!"

"I didn't even see him move and bam! That sand guy was sent packing!"

While numerous cheers rang out around the stadium at the stunning display of the oldest child of the Hokage, others started to get nervous having seen what happens when someone landed a blow on the redhead.

"This is bad..." Asuma said, his eyes beginning to narrow seeing the redhead's sand armor start to chip and break off.

"I just hope it's not a repeat of what happened in the preliminaries. Especially if it's one of Hokage-sama's children." Kurenai said, biting her bottom lip slightly in apprehension.

"Yeah..." Was all Gai said, though he seemed rather calm and collected, he clenched his hands into tight fists from the memory of his most prized student almost becoming a cripple.

"..." Kakashi didn't say anything, opting to watch the match with seemingly detached interest, though there was a slight steel to his eyes that conveyed his true feelings.

"Don't do anything reckless Naruto." Anko whispered, fear and concern filling her heart as she watched Gaara start to lose more of his sanity.

With the genin, they were all worried for what was about to happen. They had see the damage that Lee had caused and Gaara brushed all of it off and still managed to nearly cripple him.

"I-It won't be like the preliminaries right Sakura...?" Ino asked, her voice shaky and barely a whisper.

"I-I hope not Ino..." Sakura replied, her eyes wide and full of fear as Gaara started to breathe heavily as he stared at Naruto.

"Tch. Don't give him any openings Naruto, you're better then that. I know, I taught you better." Zabuza said, gritting his teeth and clenching his fist.

"Naruto-kun, please be safe." Haku whispered, holding her hands together in a prayer-like gesture.

"Naruto-kun, please be careful." Kin whispered, tears nearly stating to form as she watched Gaara start to take a step forward towards the blonde, laughing silently to himself.

Up in the 'Kage's Booth' Minato had extreme worry etched onto his face. Like the others, he had seen Gaara nearly cripple Lee for life and he did it without a care in the world, feeling no remorse for his actions.

He knew, from the look Kushina had given the redhead and the details that the Kazekage had given him, that Gaara was a jinchūriki. That alone made him worry and now, Gaara was starting to let the bijū inside of him start to take over judging from the vile chakra that slowly started to seep out of him.

Narrowing his eyes slightly, he closed his right hand into a tight fist as he watched the redhead approach his son with his head hanging down. He would stop this match before his son faced the same situation that Lee faced earlier in the exams. He could only hope that Gaara had some semblance of control over his bijū; because if he didn't, the crowd could also be in danger of being dragged into the match.

Next to him, Kushina was terrified. She knew, from experience, what a jinchūriki could do. Now her oldest was facing one and an unstable one at that. Biting her bottom lip, she clenched her hands tightly as she stared at the scene of Gaara slowly lumbering towards Naruto, his laughter starting to pick up as he neared the blonde. She could only hope that Minato or the other jōnin were ready to step in and stop the match before she loses her son.

Beside both of them, the Kazekage was grinning widely beneath his veil. Now he would truly see how powerful his future vessel was, if he managed to stand toe to toe with a jinchūriki, then he would definitely be the perfect body to assimilate. Quickly schooling his facial features, he refocused his attention to the battle as Gaara's head snapped up.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Arena)

"Hahaha...HAHAHA!" Gaara laughed, getting louder and louder as sand started to cover his face one again before moving onto the rest of his body, covering him fully and visibly in his sand armor. As soon as his laughter stopped, Naruto moved.

Lowering his body slightly, Naruto sped forward as he buried his fist into Gaara's stomach. As the blow connected and sunk into the redhead's body, all pressure against Naruto's fist vanished as the Gaara that he had just attacked started to breakdown into sand. As soon as the first grain started to fall, the sand clone in front of him exploded as a curtain of sand tried to envelop Naruto.

Quickly backpedaling, Naruto managed to escape the sand as it crashed into the ground, Gaara standing behind it with the same expression still on his face as he raised his hand towards Naruto. As he did, another tendril of sand lunged at the blonde who evaded its attempts to grab him.

Dodging to the left, Naruto swung the back of his right hand as the tendril neared him, sending sand scattering once more. Following up his back fist, Naruto surged forward as he slammed his foot into Gaara's abdomen sending him flying back. Not letting up, Naruto rushed him down as he smashed his fist into the redhead's abdomen sending him flying faster then before.

But before Naruto could continue his assault, he crouched as a wide tendril of sand swatted the air where his head was just a second ago. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto growled as he began to notice that he wasn't moving as fast as he should have been or hitting as hard. Considering that he's been working on physical conditioning with beings that were practically deities made flesh, it wasn't making sense why the match wasn't over already.

"_**Hahaha... How interesting. How long has it been since I've witnessed a host of mine fight one of the nine**__._" An all too familiar voice in Naruto's head spoke, making Naruto furrow his brow slightly as his head throbbed slightly.

Naruto was broken out of his stupor when Gaara narrowed his eyes and spread his arms out wide as two pillars of sand formed behind him. Quickly, Gaara closed his arms as the sand pillars began to shift before firing a volley of shuriken shaped sand.

"**Suna Shuriken**!" Gaara shouted, as the shuriken ripped into the area, creating a large explosion of debris as a cloud obstructed all vision of the target zone.

As the dust cloud started to expand, it was blown away as something shot out of it, heading towards Gaara. Within the next second, Naruto had slammed his fist into the redhead's jaw, sending him flying back. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto chased down the younger boy before grabbing him by the leg, turning and slamming him into the ground.

Hitting the ground, Gaara let out a soundless scream as the air was forced out of his lungs from the impact. The force of the blow caused the redhead to bounce up as Naruto finished up his assault.

Narrowing his eyes, he buried his fist into jinchūriki's side. However, sand exploded as soon as the fist connected, Naruto's eyes widening as his arm buried itself up to the elbow into the other boy's body. Quickly, Naruto tried to rip his arm out of the sand only for his head to start to throb as he grimaced in pain.

"_**How pitiful. You will never defeat an abomination like him with those self-imposed limitations you've placed on yourself.**_" The voice from earlier returning, the momentary lapse in concentration costing him.

The gourd on Gaara's back shattered as another Gaara appeared to the shock of everyone present. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he moved, jumping away from the blonde as he raised his right arm and his head.

"AHAHAHA! **SABAKU SŌSŌ**!" Gaara roared, as he closed his open hand. As he roared, everyone froze as his pale blue-green eyes were now different. The sclera of his eyes now black, with yellow irises and pupils that each takes the shape of a black four-pointed star with four black dots around it.

"GUH!" As those words left Gaara's mouth, pain exploded in Naruto's left arm as he cried out in pain, his eyes snapping shut as his left arm was crushed by the sand. Blood slowly started to saturate the sand before finally seeping out onto the floor of the arena as the spectators looked on in mix of horror and shock.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto forced his eyes open as he made a claw with his right hand. Gathering futon natured chakra, he quickly freed himself from the sand that was now trying to cover the entirety of his left side.

"**Futon: Shinkuuhasou**!" Naruto quickly shouted, slicing through the chakra thick sand with a claw made of futon natured chakra.

Managing to tear his mangled arm out of the now loose sand, Naruto made as much distance between him and Gaara, the two now facing each other from the opposite ends of the arena.

Clutching his left arm, Naruto winced in pain as he saw the extent of the damage done by Gaara's jutsu. His left arm, from the elbow down, was now covered in sand and blood with small bits of bone protruding in a few places. Heaving a pained sigh, he refocused on the redhead in front of him as he ignored the searing pain in his left arm for now, slowly settling into a loose stance as Gaara started chuckling darkly.

"Mother... His blood... His blood is tasty isn't it... Don't you worry, I'll get you more soon..." He muttered just loud enough for Naruto to hear, the blonde narrowing his eyes upon hearing his words.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Stands)

In the 'Kage's Box' silence reigned supreme, the group of people inside looking at the scene of Naruto clutching the mangled remains of his left arm couldn't voice their thoughts. The silence was immediately broken as Kushina stood up, her eyes wide in fear.

"Naru-chan! Minato, stop the match this instant! Naru-chan can't continue with his arm like that! Call the match and get him to the infirmary!" Kushina shouted at her husband in a hysterical tone, her eyes filled with a seemingly endless sea of fear.

Hearing the words of his wife, Minato snapped out of his stupor as he nodded. As he was about to stand up, the Kazekage quickly broke out of his trance and spoke up.

"Wait! Hokage-dono, don't stop the match!" He said, getting looks of utter confusion and anger, from Kushina, as they faced him.

"What do you mean 'don't stop the match'?! My son isn't in any condition to continue! You're going to get him killed if you're thinking of letting him keep fighting!" Kushina nearly roared, causing the Kazekage to shrink slightly before he regained his composure.

"Please hear me out Kushina-dono, I believe that Naruto-dono is quite the skilled shinobi. An injury like that will most likely occur in the field sooner or later in his career as a ninja, this battle with simulate such an event. Calling the match now would only show that you are still treating him as a child rather then a shinobi. All participants signed a waiver that stated that death was a possible outcome of the exams, so he knew that he could have died any moment during the exams. Stopping the match now would only serve to revoke that waiver." The Kazekage stated, making Kushina and Minato widen their eyes slightly before Kushina narrowed hers.

But before she could do anything, Minato stopped her by speaking up.

"Kushina, I'm sorry but I have to agree with Kazekage-dono on this matter. Naruto knew that death was a part of the exams, stopping him now would only make him more irritated with us. Hayate is down there as the proctor, not only that but the other jōnin are close by. Should anything happen, they would jump in and make sure that Naruto isn't killed. Not only them but Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru are right here; they would be more then fast and strong enough to stop Naruto from being killed. And if worst comes to worst, I'm not known as the fastest shinobi alive for nothing." Minato reasoned as Kushina just scoffed and faced the arena one again, her anger replaced with fear once more as she laid her eyes on her son's horrendous injury.

"_Naru-chan, please forfeit! Don't risk getting more hurt then you already are!"_ Kushina thought as she balled her hands into fists.

"_Naruto, don't do anything reckless. Know your limits and don't be afraid to call the match if things get too dangerous._" Minato thought, his eyes never leaving his son's injury as he fretted over it in his mind.

"_Now things get interesting. Haha!_" The Kazekage thought, his eyes shining as he looked with profound interest at the two.

Over on the rooftops of the stadium, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru stared at Gaara with steely eyes. They knew what he contained and that alone worried them, especially since his seal wasn't as stable as the seals of other jinchūriki. Quickly glancing at each other, they nodded as they reached a silent agreement to step in should anything more dangerous happen to their enigmatic godson.

In the stands, silence reigned as the spectators saw Naruto's arm. Some turned green as they've never seen such an injury in their lives as others winced and clutched their own arms as a chill ran down their spines. With a certain father-daughter pair, their thoughts were a little more varied.

"_That damn redheaded brat. If you do permanent damage to Naruto I'll make you regret it. No one messes with my family and gets away with it._" Zabuza angrily thought, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists as he glared at Gaara, releasing a large amount of killing intent.

"_Naruto-kun, please don't do anything rash. Sometimes surrender is the best choice of action, it's not a weakness to know when to give up._" Haku thought with eyes wide in fear, seeing the boy she adored reduced to such a damaged state.

Haku knew from her experience as a medic that the injury that he had now would not only hinder him in battle but could also cost him his arm if he didn't get it treated. That fact and the fact that he was losing a lot of blood really made Haku want to jump down there and stop the match herself, the only thing restraining her from doing so was the fact that the Hokage hasn't stopped the match himself. Biting her bottom lip slightly, she could only pray that the match didn't drag on for much longer.

In another section of the stands Ino, Sakura and Choji looked on with mouths agape as they saw what had just happened. Ino and Sakura were green as they had their eyes snapped shut and their hands over their mouths, never having seen an injury that bad since the battle Gaara had with Lee. Next to them Choji was the same, putting the chip he was about to eat back into the bag where it came from.

With Hiashi and Hanabi, they were wide eyed at the scene; Hanabi more so then Hiashi. Hanabi quickly adverted her eyes when she laid them on Naruto's bloody arm while Hiashi grimaced slightly.

With the Uchiha family, they were wide eyed in shock. Only Satsuki knew how brutal Gaara was and she was still shocked. Itachi had his eyes narrowed at the redhead, seeing vile chakra emitting from the boy with his Sharingan.

"_This chakra, why does it feel so evil and bloodthirsty? It has a similar feeling to the Kyūbi._" He thought, never breaking his gaze from the redhead.

"_That boy... So he's also a jinchūriki. It would be wise to call the match Hayate, Minato's oldest can't hope to beat someone like that._" Fugaku thought, shifting his focus between the two boys below.

"_Minato, you need to stop this match before your son gets permanently injured for life._" Mikoto thought, giving a worried glance at the boy her daughter fancied.

"_No... Naruto, not you too..._" Satsuki thought, fear and worry filling her eyes. She could only stare wide eyed at her blonde teammate as she clenched her fists tightly.

On the opposite side of the stadium, the jōnin were looking on with varying expressions. Gai grimaced, knowing the damage that Gaara had caused to his prized pupil. He could only hope that Naruto escaped with lighter injuries then Lee.

"_Naruto-kun, please do not be reckless and foolish. You're in no condition to continue with this battle, doing so would only harm you much more in the future._ Gai thought, silently praying that Naruto would somehow hear his thoughts.

Asuma and Kurenai were looking on with their eyes wide, not believing that there was going to be a repeat of what happened during the preliminaries. Only this time it was going to be the oldest son of the Hokage who was going to be crushed by Gaara's sand.

"_Damn! Not again! Hopefully Hayate will stop it before it gets as bad as it did in the prelims._" Asuma thought, furrowing his brow slightly at the scene. Next to him, a raven haired beauty wasn't as subtle at showing her displeasure.

"_Hayate, don't be a fool! Stop the match! Naruto is clearly in no shape to continue!_" Kurenai angrily thought, furious that her comrade hasn't stopped the match after seeing what had just happened. Glaring daggers at the sickly proctor, she started to grind her teeth as her irritation and worry only grew.

Anko was staring at the scene with her eyes wide open, shaking slightly as she stared at the bloody and mangled arm of her student. The longer she stared at it, more and more fear started to seep into her heart. She knew that Naruto was powerful, skilled and above all else tough, but he couldn't handle someone like Gaara.

"_Naruto! Stop! Just give up! You can't keep going, you're only going to cripple yourself if you keep fighting!_" She wanted to scream at her student but her words were caught in her throat.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

Within the infirmary it was also as silent as a graveyard as everyone watched what had happened just a few moments ago. But that silence was broken when a dull thud was heard, making everyone quickly shift their attention to the source of the noise.

Having just seen her older brother get his arm crushed to a bloody pulp Mito lost all feelings in her legs as she dropped to her knees. Her eyes wide, she just stared at the scene of her brother clutching his arm unmoving.

"Naruto-nii..." She whispered, never moving from her position even as the nurses tried to speak to her.

Next to her Narumi stood frozen in place as she stared at her older brother, her eyes also wide and shaking in fear. But no matter how much she tried to speak, no words managed to make their way out of her mouth, only light gasping.

"_Naru-nii, no. No, no no!_" She shouted in her mind, her mouth refusing to follow her mind's order to voice her thoughts.

On her bed Yakumo just stared at the scene with wide eyes. Never before, even on their mission to the wave and his battle with Zabuza, she had never seen her blonde teammate injured to such an extent. No words made their way out of her mouth, opting to stay in her mind.

"_Hayate-sensei! Stop the match! Please, before Naruto gets more hurt!_" She thought, praying that Hayate heard her thoughts.

"Looks like we're getting a repeat of what happened with Lee in the prelims huh." Menma muttered under his breath, quiet enough so only he heard.

"Damn, not again..." Shikamaru muttered, his eyes narrowed at the sight before him. From his knowledge of the blonde and the redhead, he already predicted the outcome of the battle and it wasn't pretty.

With Temari and Kankuro, they opted to remain silent, knowing that Gaara was starting to lose control. They could only hope that he didn't fully give into the demon that resided within him.

(Scene change – Examination Stadium: Arena)

Seeing the damage Gaara had inflicted to Naruto, Hayate quickly moved to stop the match only for Naruto to shoot him a dark look, making him pause. After a few seconds of eye contact, he slowly but hesitantly nodded. He could only hope the blonde knew what he was getting himself into.

Naruto could feel the varying degrees of stares that were directed at him, mentally shaking his head at the shock and concern that was emanating from the stands. His injury wasn't light but it wasn't anything that he hasn't experienced before, training with dragons had that kind of effect, including having limbs mutilated and mangled.

"_I don't know what they're so worried about, it's not like I'm dying. If things get bad Hayate sensei will step in to stop either of us from dying._" Naruto thought as he quickly scanned the stands, noticing the looks of concern on certain people.

Letting go of his left arm, Naruto sighed as he closed his eyes before he opened them once more. His normal navy blue eyes were now electric blue but lacked the draconian pupil that normally accompanied it. Locking eyes with Gaara, he narrowed them as he saw that they were extremely different from before, still filled with insanity and bloodlust only much greater.

As the two stared each other down, sand slowly started to collect around Gaara's left side. Slowly, the seemingly random pile of sand started to take the shape of a strange claw-like appendage. His eye widening, Naruto quickly dove to the right as the newly formed sand claw shot towards him with speed he didn't expect the redheaded boy to have.

Hitting the ground, Naruto rolled into a crouched position as Gaara's sand claw retracted back to his body. Noticing that there was a slight delay between Gaara moving his real arm and the sand arm, Naruto evaded another thrust from before he sped forward. Vanishing and appearing once again crouched next to Gaara, Naruto drove his fist into Gaara's right side, which was still free from the sand that covered his left side.

Naruto's fist connecting, Gaara was sent flying as his sand armor was blown off. Growling, he righted himself while in the air before driving his sand claw into the ground to stop his acceleration. In a surprising display of skill, Gaara let his body fly a little more before he tensed the sand arm.

Like a rubber band, Gaara slowed before he starting moving in the opposite direction, quickly gaining speed before he ripped his arm out of the ground, flying towards Naruto. Slightly shocked at the adaptability that Gaara had just shown him, Naruto ducked as he soared overhead, his sand claw intent on ripping him in half. Spinning on his heel, Naruto lashed out and slammed his foot into the younger boy's abdomen, sending him straight up into the air.

Immediately standing, Naruto was about to follow up his attack but stopped as his head started throbbing once more, much more intensely then before. Above him, Gaara was experiencing a similar sensation as he righted himself and created some distance from the blonde and himself as he grabbed the side of his head, like Naruto was doing.

"Ngh... Mother, what's wrong?" Gaara mumbled, as sand slowly spiraled around him in a protective manner, ready to intercept any attack that was sent his way.

"_**Be careful, there is something very dangerous about that boy. Kill him before whatever is inside of him get's out. Kill him! Kill him! Kill! Quickly!**_" The voice inside Gaara's head screamed and roared, causing a pained scream to leave his throat as he clutched his head before the pain quickly left.

Raising his head, his eyes locked onto Naruto before he inhaled and roared, a blast of wind rocketing towards the blonde.

"**Futon: Daitoppa**!" Gaara roared, making close closest to the arena cover their eyes and brace themselves as the wind also reached them as well.

However, Naruto didn't even react to Gaara roaring at him or the surge of wind that sent him colliding with the wall behind him. As he impacted with a audible thud and slumped down, he felt no pain. The only thing that was on going through his head was the voice that continually taunted him as he sat there, motionless.

"_**Hahaha! Is that it?! How disgraceful... Someone who was trained by the strongest beings in existence being beaten by an abomination of his caliber. What would those who invested their precious time in helping you advance and grow, who nurtured and strengthened you, who they took in as the last human who they will ever let into their hearts? They would be affronted to no end, having raised such a deplorable and weak child.**_" The voice said, getting Naruto to clutch his head in agony.

"_S-Shut up! W-Who are you?! Wh-Why are you saying this!? WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!_" Naruto scream in his mind, gritting his teeth as the pain intensified as dark laughter echoed as a mocking reply to his questions. Across from him, Gaara's eyes also widened as his own inner demon screamed at him.

"_**NO! NO, NO, NO! DO NOT LET HIM COME NEAR YOU! DON'T LET HIM OUT! KILL HIM! KILL HIM! HE'S DANGEROUS! KILL HIM NOW!**_" The demon inside of Gaara roared, getting Gaara to scream even louder as sand started to cover him.

The cork on his gourd popped off as sand erupted from it, mixing with the sand that already covered Gaara. As the seconds ticked by, more and more sand started to collect, pile and fuse to the strange sand body that encased Gaara. Soon though, it stopped as Gaara had physically changed.

Where Gaara once stood, a bestial demon stood as drool seeped from its maw. A bulky, tan colored body with arms that ended with no distinct fingers but asymmetric claws. Its tail was thick and had protrusions running along the width of it. Its head wide and broad, two ears resting on top with a thick snout in the front. The beast was finished off with strange blue markings that ran along its entire body. Finally, it raised its head and locked onto Naruto's form before it bellowed.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

In the stands, fear and confusion reigned as the dominant emotions that were being felt by the audience. They had just witnessed something that most people, even ninja, wouldn't have experienced. They had just watched the transformation of a jinchūriki.

"W-What is he?" A terrified Ino and Sakura said in unison, holding each other as they stared at Gaara with eyes wide in fear. Shaking in their seats, they tightened the hold they had on each other when Gaara roughly exhaled.

"I-I don't know." Choji choked out, his bag of chips rattling in his hand as he stared at Gaara's new form.

"S-Sucks t-to b-be him right n-now..." Kiba said, stuttering as his instincts screamed at him to run away from the area at the sight of Gaara's new form.

"B-But he's not supposed to transform...Not against Naruto-kun..." Kin whispered, tears in her eyes as Gaara acted outside of what she was told by Hiruko.

"T-Tou-sama... What is Naruto-kun fighting against...? Is he really fighting another human?" Haku shakily asked, her eyes wide as she looked at Gaara.

"...No he's not Haku... He's fighting something completely out of his league..." Zabuza whispered in a low tone, his eyes sharper then his Kubikiribōchō.

"_That does it. If that monster takes a step towards Naruto I'm stepping in. If his own father won't stop the match, then I will._" Zabuza promised in his mind, his hand slowly moving towards the holster that contained his kunai.

With the jōnin, they were all looking on with wide eyes. They had known that Gaara was a jinchūriki, but they didn't expect him to transform to this extent.

"This is seriously bad! We need to stop the match!" Asuma shouted, standing up as the others followed suit.

"Anko-chan!? Why aren't you standing up and getting ready?!" Kurenai shouted at her best friend, though she didn't even seem hear her words as Anko's attention was focused on someone else.

"_Momochi, you seriously plan on killing the redhead if he takes a step towards Naruto aren't you... Well you're not the only one..._" She said in her head, her eyes locked onto the man in question as he moved his hand towards his holster, before she locked onto the partially transformed jinchūriki with her hand mimicking his actions.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

"Oh no..." Was all that let the mouths of the two Suna ninja that were present in the infirmary. They knew that Gaara was going to transform but they didn't expect him to go this far. They could only hope that their father knew what to do in case he really did lose control of the Shukaku.

"W-What the heck? I-Is he really a monster?" Shikamaru asked, his eyes wide with fear at the sight of Gaara's new form.

"I-Is he even human? Wh-What are you fighting Naruto-kun?" Yakumo whispered, her eyes never leaving the sight of Gaara and Naruto. Biting her bottom lip, she tightened the grip she had on her sheets as she prayed for the safety of her teammate.

"W-What is he?!" Menma said as his eyes were wide with fear and disbelief. Menma started to feel fear seep into his heart but quickly quelled it with a shake of the head, knowing that his parents and godparents would stop the monster in the arena should anything happen.

Beside him, his sisters were silent as they held each other in a tight embrace, their eyes wide with fear. Unlike Menma though, they were wide with both the fear of the monster in front of them and the fear of losing their brother. Never before had they felt such bloodthirsty and evil chakra, and all of it was directed at the one they loved.

"Please Tou-san, Kaa-san, protect him... Protect Naru-nii..." Narumi trailed off, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Tou-san, Kaa-san... Please save Naruto-nii..." Mito whispered, holding her younger sister closer as she began to shake as Gaara's bloodlust suddenly intensified.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

"H-He's a monster... Naruto-kun is fighting a monster..." Satsuki whispered, her eyes wide as she stared at Gaara. Beside her, her family's thoughts were along the same lines.

"_Minato you need to stop the match! This could get out of hand at any moment!_" Fugaku thought, directing a look towards the 'Kage's Box'.

"_If that monster gets out of control everyone here will be in trouble. Minato-sama, please stop this match before that happens._" Itachi said in his head, also casting a look towards the 'Kage's Box'.

"_Minato, Kushina. You two need to stop this and save your son and my future son-in-law. Please stop it now!_" Mikoto shouted in her mind, casting a worried glance at Naruto before turning to face the 'Kage's Box'.

"T-Tou-sama, w-what is h-he?" Hanabi whispered to her father, almost unheard as she feared that somehow the monster in front of her might hear her. Sensing his daughter's fear and unease, Hiashi held her hand and squeezed it gently.

"Do not worry Hanabi. Should anything happen, Minato is here as well as Kushina and the Sannin. They will protect us." He said, though deep inside he was also feeling slight unease as he stared at the transformed boy in front of him.

"_Do not be foolish Minato. Do not let that monster kill your son, stop this match this instant._" Hiashi thought, looking at the 'Kage's Box' with a stern expression on his face.

"Now this is getting interesting." Jiraiya said, his eyes shifting between the downed form of his godson and Gaara. He would step in when things go south but no such event has happened yet.

"So that's the jinchūriki of the Shukaku huh. Pretty interesting, hope it doesn't hurt Naruto too bad." Tsunade said, taking another gulp of sake from her saucer. Like Jiraiya, she would step in before things got out of hand.

"..." Orochimaru was silent as he scrutinized Gaara's new form, looking for any weak spots when he jumped in to save his godson.

While the three didn't know their oldest and most enigmatic godson, they would still protect him like they would his siblings.

In the 'Kage's Box' Minato and Kushina were standing up from their seats as they stared with eyes wide with fear at the sight of the partially transformed Gaara. Reason left their minds as their bodies began to move without being told to do so, their instincts as parents making them spring into action. But before they were able to move, someone stopped them.

"Wait! Hokage-dono! Kushina-dono!" The Kazekage shouted, standing up as well.

His voice managed to catch the attention of the two, but when they turned to face him all that was in their eyes was unbridled fury.

"What are you talking about?! This match has gone long enough, I should have stopped it when your son had partially transformed!" Minato growled out, as he narrowed his eyes at the other Kage.

"Forget about him Minato! We need to save Naru-chan!" Kushina shouted, as she took a step forward.

But before they could move, Gaara did.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

This was the final straw, Hayate knew that he should have stopped the match when Naruto got his arm mangled but he trusted that Naruto had an ace up his sleeve, which he apparently didn't. But before he could move, Gaara did in a surprising show of speed.

"**NARUTO UZUMAKI-NAMIKAZE**! **DIE AND GIVE MOTHER YOUR BLOOD**!" He roared, as his right arm and hand condensed into a claw-like spear.

"**KICHIGAI ****SHUKAKU NO HOKO**!" He roared, stopping before the downed blonde with his arm poised to strike.

Everyone in attendance watched on in horror as speared the older boy as an explosion rang out, dust obscuring them from view. Once the dust settled, the stadium turned as silent as a grave as people grew green at the sight before them.

Against the wall of the arena, there stood Gaara as he had his hand speared buried into Naruto's chest, blood splattered across the ground where they stood. The silence that embraced the stadium was shattered as Gaara started laughing before he stared cackling madly. With a sickening squelch and crunch, he ripped his spear-like hand out of Naruto before laughing even more.

Taking a step back and seemingly admiring his work, Gaara started chuckling darkly as Naruto seemed to have stopped breathing and moving as blood pooled below him, staining his clothes and the ground a rich crimson. He did pierce his chest and in turn his lungs if not his heart.

"**I've done it Mother! I've killed him! His blood tastes good doesn't it! AHAHAHA!**" Gaara shouted into the air, madness and bloodlust still filling his eyes.

"_**Pitiful. A minor wound like having your heart and lungs pierced and you die. Such a fragile creature, you truly aren't fit to wield the power of a dragon. However, it isn't time for you to meet your end. Hahaha, you are quite lucky I am such a generous being boy. I'll aid you this once and release a drop of the power that White has tried so desperately to seal.**_" A voice within Naruto's fading mind said, echoing softly.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

"NARUTO!" Satsuki screamed, standing up in her seat as she startled the people around her. But she didn't care, she had just seen the boy that she liked speared like a fish as the person who did it just laughed about it madly and she couldn't do a thing about it. Lowering her head, she threw away all her pride in front of her family as she started crying.

Seeing her in such a state broke the hearts of her family, Mikoto embracing her to her chest as she poured her heart out. Fugaku and Itachi gave Satsuki a sad gaze before locking their eyes on the jinchūriki in front of them, both having their Sharingan spinning as they readied themselves in case Gaara decided to attack the audience next.

"Na-Naruto-kun..." Haku whispered, her eyes wide as she stared at the bloody hole that covered nearly half his chest. Soon tears gave way as she noticed his chest wasn't moving, as she buried her face into her hands and started sobbing quietly.

"Damn it..." Zabuza muttered, tightening the grip he hand on his kunai so much that his knuckles turned white. He snapped his eyes shut and grit his teeth as a few stray tears fell from his eyes, he wasn't going to accept this. Not even if the Hokage, Kazekage, Konoha or Suna came after him.

"N-No... Naruto-kun, you can't be... This wasn't supposed to happen..." Kin said, her eyes wide as tears fell freely from them.

With the jonin they were silent as shock filled their faces, but amongst them sat someone who had pure murder in her tear filled eyes.

"I'm going to kill him. No matter what, I swear I'll kill him." Anko whispered, tightening her grip on her kunai as a tears fell from her eyes.

"N-No way..." Sakura said, her eyes wide as she looked at the bloody form of Naruto.

"H-He's n-not... He can't be r-right?" Ino asked, her eyes filled with disbelief at seeing one of her comrades and former classmate seemingly dead.

"N-Naruto..." Choji said, his eyes wide as he dropped his bag of chips. He turned green as he stared at the hole in the blondes chest as bile started to rise up in his throat, never having seen such a horrifying injury in his life.

"D-Damn... E-Even he d-didn't deserve that..." Kiba said, turning green at the sight of the hole in Naruto's chest.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Infirmary)

"N-Naruto-kun..." Yakumo said, tears falling from her eyes as she saw the state of her teammate.

"Damn... Poor kid..." Kankuro muttered under his breath, casting a pitying look towards the blonde and redheaded girls across the room.

"...Hopefully that'll satisfy him for the rest of the tournament..." Temari said, casting the same look towards the same people her younger brother was.

"N-Na-Naru-nii..." Narumi said, her eyes wide as tears streamed down her face. She held her older sister closer before she buried her face on her should and started sobbing.

"I-It can't be...Na-Naruto-nii..." Mito said, trembling as she held Narumi tightly as tears also made their way down her face.

"..." Menma remained silent, though there was a light sheen to his eyes that slowly turned into tears against his will.

"N-No way... Damn it..." Shikamaru said, snapping his eyes shut as he let his head drop down.

The entirety of the infirmary was silent except for the light sobbing of three girls.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Stands)

It was dead silent in the 'Kage's Box' as Minato and Kushina looked at the bloody form of their son with tears falling from their eyes. Almost mechanically, they fell to their knees as their eyes remained locked onto Naruto. But soon sadness and sorrow were replaced with a burning fury as they clenched their fists and gritted their teeth. Someone was going to pay, be it the Kazekage or his son, but there would be blood to be paid.

The Kazekage stood with his eyes wide, not believing that Gaara had actually taken down his vessel. It was all out of his calculations, his data showed that Naruto had more then sufficient strength to defeat someone of Gaara's caliber. Gritting his teeth, he cursed his miscalculation as it had cost him possibly the most powerful vessel he had gotten a hold of.

With the three Sannin, they were speechless at what had just happened. This wasn't supposed to happen, they were supposed to step in before things turned out this way, yet their godson was dead because of their lack of dedication. Even if they had indeed bet on who they favored to win, they didn't want to win at the cost of their family, even if that family member was an enigma to them.

As the stands slowly came out of their shock and horror filled state, it was replaced with sorrow at the loss that had just occur. Someone in the earliest years of their life meeting a tragic end because of a monster. But that also quickly vanished as something no one had anticipated happened.

(Scene change - Examination Stadium: Arena)

"**Don't worry Mother... I'll get you more blood soon.**" Gaara said, as he lost interest in Naruto, having taken blood that pooled under the blonde into his sand. But now, under the influence of the Shukaku, he directed his attention to the person closest to him, Hayate.

Hayate was in shock and despair, what he had been assigned to do was prevent all deaths if possible and now, because of his lack of action, someone who he respected had just been brutally killed. He was broken out of his thoughts though as he felt an immense amount of killing intent. His eyes widening, he found himself being stared down by Gaara like a predator staring down its prey.

"**Your blood, Mother is asking for your blood.**" Gaara said as he started lumbering towards him.

However, Gaara didn't have time to react as he was sent barreling towards the wall of the arena, screaming in pain as he felt his very soul was injured by the attack, the Shukaku screaming in pain as the attack pierced it through the seal. Colliding into the wall, Gaara managed to free himself but froze as he felt killing intent like no other.

He wasn't the only one as Hayate and the rest of the stadium was subjected to what could only be described as being held by the throat by the Shinigami itself. Even the Shukaku inside of Gaara stopped its mad ramblings as fear invaded its soul, having not felt the killing intent present since the time of the Rikudō Sennin when it and the others were merely children.

Naruto stood before him, his head held down as his hair overshadowed his eyes. His face was blank, his mouth a thin line on his face. The injuries from earlier were still present, his left arm had just started bleeding once again while the wound on his chest was still oozing blood at a steady rate. But all of that changed when a black jagged scale-like pattern started to spread across the blonde's body, starting from his shoulder it started to cover his left side. As it spread, it completely covered his arm, the side of his leg and part of his face, ending at his jaw line as he remained facing the ground.

(Flashback - Sometime during the month of training)

In the midst of training, Naruto heaved out an exhausted sigh as he dropped to a knee as raised his head to face Jho. Unlike the other sessions before, Jho was pushing Naruto much harder then he had been doing. As he was kneeling down, he grimaced and dropped his head as his it started to throb, getting a knowing look from Jho though he didn't see it as he closed his eyes.

"_**Naruto... You have the potential to surpass even Ryuuhei in terms of power. But in the same sense, using that power will cost you much more then it did Ryuuhei.**_ _**Drop blood on the finest snow and it will inevitably absorb it and turn crimson, tainted power has such a nature.**_" Jho said, getting a shocked look from Naruto as he raised his head once more looking into Jho's eyes.

"W-What are you talking about Jho? Tainted power? Like I'd ever accept something like that, Ryuuhei told me to never accept power like that, no matter how much stronger it would make me." Naruto said confidently. He expected Jho to just laugh like he always did, but when he looked as the dragon once more he was shocked to see him so serious.

"_**Naruto, I pray that you never tap into the dormant power that sleeps within you however, there may come a time where you have to cross that line. Just remember, when you use that power. You may...**_"

(Flashback - End)

"_**Forfeit your humanity.**_" The voice in Naruto's head said, as Naruto raised his head as a black and crimson spiral of chakra exploded around him, creating a small crater under the blonde. In place of his electric blue or normal navy blue eyes, there was only a bloody crimson that held a draconian pupil.

"**RRRRAAAAHHHHH!**"

A Son Forgotten

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><p><strong>Well, there it is. Hope you guys still enjoy my story. I'll try to pump out chapters as consistently as possible, as long as the inspiration keeps flowing. Again, leave me a review and tell me what you guys think. And PM me, I promise to answer you guys now that I'm over my funk. Thanks for putting up with me guys, and as always. Stay awesome.<strong>

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><p><strong>Shunshin - Body Flicker<strong>: D-Rank Ninjutsu; A high-speed movement technique, allowing a ninja to move short to long distances at an almost untraceable speed. To an observer, it appears as if the user has teleported. A puff of smoke is occasionally used to disguise the user's movements. It is accomplished by using chakra to temporarily vitalize the body and move at extreme speeds. The amount of chakra required depends on the overall distance and elevation between the user and the intended destination.

**Futon: Senpūken - Wind Release: Whirlwind Fist**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; The user gathers chakra into their fist and fires out a whirlwind, which the size and scale of is dependent on the amount of chakra that is used. It can adapt to increase the size, range, and power of many different elements including katon and suiton jutsu.

**Suna Shuriken - Sand Shuriken**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; A technique used by Gaara. He shapes the sand around him into countless shuriken. Taking advantage of that formidable centrifugal force, the fired blades of sand change into dangerous weapons. Gaara creates and fires an uninterrupted succession of sand rounds, tearing everything in sight to pieces.

**Sabaku Sōsō - Sand Waterfall Funeral**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu; Once trapping his opponent in his sand, Gaara will cause the sand to implode and crush whatever is within it. According to Gaara, when used to kill a person, the death is so quick that there isn't even time for the victim to feel any pain. The pressure also produces a sizeable fountain of blood. Gaara can control the pressure used in the attack, which allows him to either break bones or completely liquefy an opponent.

**Futon: Shinkuuhasou - Wind Release: Vacuum Destruction Claw**: B-Rank, Ninjutsu, Taijutsu; A relatively basic jutsu that incorporates futon natured chakra into an attack that replicates the slashing motion of a dragon. The basic principal of the jutsu is to create five sharp bladed claws of chakra that allow the user to enhance and augment their effective range and damage. With enough control, the user can also slash and fire the claws at their target, which allows for surprise ranged attacks. The defining characteristic of this jutsu is the amount of shape and nature manipulation to keep the five claws razor sharp at all times and still be able to extend and contract them at will, making it a difficult jutsu to learn and master.

**Futon: Daitoppa - Wind Release: Great Breakthrough**: C-Rank, Ninjutsu; This is a relatively simple technique that creates a sudden gust of wind, but its scale varies greatly depending on the user. If used by a superior shinobi, it has enough destructive power to knock down a large tree. The wind from the squall can blow away all things in the user's line of sight. Adding it to katon jutsu can increase the power of said jutsu

**Saikō Zettai Kōgeki: Kichigai Shukaku no Hoko - Ultimately Hard Absolute Attack: Mad Spear of Shukaku**: A-Rank, Ninjutsu, Taijutsu; In his partially transformed state, Gaara fueled by the desire to eliminate and give the Shukaku the blood of his target, shapes his hand and arm in the form of a halberd, in a shape reminiscent of the Shukaku's hand. There is no defense that this halberd can break through.


End file.
